A Thousand Obstacles
by ladytruth247
Summary: What happens when Serena is hired at Shields Inc., and she slowly falls for her seemingly cold boss. How many things can get in the way of true love? Rated M for future chapters. Serena/Darien love.
1. Chapter 1

Serena Jones was late again. She could hear the words of her best friend floating into her head, "Serena you clod! What am I going to do with you!?" She smiled a quick smile as she focused all her energy on running to the Little Coffee Shop where Mina Atkinson waited for her. 'God, she really is going to kill me, I'm half an hour late!' Even for her, who was known to be tardy, it was a little ridiculous. She saw the sign of the little shop and smiled in triumph. 'Whew, I made it! Jeez, Sere, you need to get your ass to the gym, and pronto!' She finally reached the door, and yanked it open, throwing herself into the shop and earning a couple of shocked stares.

"SERENA! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN??" A pink faced blonde yelled from a corner booth, her brown eyes shone with irritation.

Serena ran to the table and plopped into the seat across from her best friend. "Honey, I'm so sorry! I have a really good excuse this time, promise! You'll never believe what happened to me!!"

"Does it have anything to do with you, oh I don't know, falling off the face of the earth, losing your cell phone in a fire pit, and knocking all common sense out of your brain?" Mina fumed.

"Ugh, I'm sorry! But seriously you won't believe this!" Serena exclaimed with a bright smile, slowly trying to catch her breath after the ten minute jog she took to get to the shop.

"Alright, what is it?" Mina asked, giving in to her best friend of 15 years. They had known each other since they were six years old, and had been inseparable. They were often called twins, which was due to their very similar hair color, and matching expressions. You rarely saw one without the other.

"I got a job!" Serena almost screamed. Mina looked at her friend awestruck.

"If this is the news then I'm going to be really pissed."

"I got a job at Shields Inc. I'm interning there this summer! Can you believe it?!" Serena could barely hold her excitement. Finally the reaction she was waiting for erupted within her best friend.

"Oh my goodness! How'd you land that one Sere? Shields Inc., really?" Mina was in shock. Shields Inc. was one of the leading businesses in the country. They bought and sold various companies and were leading the business world in the number of companies they acquired each year. Shields Inc. was the company to be in at the moment.

"Yea! Oh god, that's why I was late! They had a last minute interview and I just had to take it! I mean we graduate in a month, and I needed a job!" Serena was a bit down about graduating from college, she had endured the best times of her life along the paths of NYU. It felt a bit wrong to just leave it when there were hundreds of parties left to attend, and numerous classes to take. She felt a twinge of pain in her heart, but brushed it aside with her new opportunity.

"Sheesh Sere, that's amazing!" Mina had already landed a job as a starting lawyer in one of New York's leading law firms, but luckily for her, she wasn't going to be working full time. She also had a fashion dream to pursue, and would be spending the other half of her time attempting to design clothes and get them on the racks. "I wonder if you'll be working for the multi-million dollar sex god!" She squealed. Darien Shields was a well known ladies' man, and was the president of the company. It had been started by his great grandfather, and had been passed down ever since then.

"Ugh, Mina you know how much I hate guys, but if I do get to work with him, I mean that is a definite plus for my future résumé." Serena had very little to do with men nowadays, she was tired of the fuss they caused in her everyday life and loved to live it up with the girls. She was satisfied with enjoying her life while she was still young enough to embrace it. Serena was like that, independent, she had to be.

"There's nothing saying you can't meet the guy! Wait till Raye gets a load of this! She'll be so jealous! You know she keeps like half of his pictures, right?" The two blondes laughed at the childishness of their mutual good friend. They passed the rest of their time talking animatedly about graduation and what would happen when they were out in the real world, not having their parents to place blame on. It was going to be an adventure, thankfully they had each other.

At the end of their long, and seemingly pointless, conversation ended, both girls departed. Serena was longing for her bubble bath. 'I totally deserve one; I mean I got a job today! It's the least I can do for myself.' She smiled as she walked the eight blocks to her apartment.

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Graduation had come and gone, and as usual, Serena and Mina were ranked top of their class; Mina above Serena. Neither of them cared which of them had the higher ranking, just knowing that they had beat out the rest of their classmates (whom were not at all encouraging or friendly to either woman) was enough for them. At this very moment, Serena was silently wishing that her alarm clock wouldn't go off. Another three minutes later, a harsh ringing broke into the still morning air. 'I really could die right now, I hate having a job.' It was to be her first day at Shields Inc. and she already hated it!

She slowly picked herself up and got out of bed to get ready for her first day of work. As she got out of the shower, she turned on her stereo in her room to get her excited for the day. The energetic music soared through the air as Serena danced around picking out an outfit. She finally settled on a high-waisted black skirt with a light blue button up. She went through the usual morning routine, blow-drying and styling her hair, applying her small amount of make-up and finding pieces of jewelry to add to her wardrobe.

Serena looked at the finished product in the mirror. The button up shirt she had chosen brought out her bright blue eyes. She smiled to herself and approved of the image looking back at her.

"It's time to live in the real world!" She said a bit nervously, but mostly her voice was filled with excitement. She ran out of her bedroom and to the kitchen where she grabbed a low-fat muffin, her car keys and her small black purse.

Serena pulled up to the massive building that was thriving with life and movement. It seemed as if everyone was trying to get into said building. She parked her silver Volvo in the lot beneath the building, and sighed. She felt her excitement ebbing away at her with each step towards the door of the office. 'You can handle this Serena, you can do anything.' With those encouraging words, she smiled and ran towards the entrance.

Serena had been in the fifth floor office for three hours, mainly filling out mindless paperwork. She was sitting at the grand oak conference table tapping her foot lightly on the floor, a nervous habit she had recently acquired. After another ten minutes of waiting, a knock came to the door. Serena instantly stopped her tapping and sat straight up in her chair as a man walked into the room.

"Serena Jones? Hi, I'm Andrew Gifford vice-president of Shields Inc., and I'm here to show you around." He said with a bright smile. Serena smiled at the man named Andrew and took in his features. He seemed like a gentle man, with dirty blonde hair and gorgeous soft brown eyes. With the smile on his face, his brown eyes sparkled with humor and excitement. 'Wow, he's gorgeous' she said to herself. 'What? I haven't thought about a guy this way in years! What's going on with me?' Serena brushed it off and stood to shake the young man's hand.

"Hey, yea that sounds great! I've been cooped up in this room for hours!" She said with a bright smile of her own. 'Wow, this girl is gorgeous, I never expected our intern to be so attractive,' Andrew thought to himself. He held the door and motioned her to step through.

The two walked around the entire 20 story building. Andrew showed her that each floor was designated for certain purposes. He introduced her to several of the company's important heads of departments, and numerous other people. She was shocked that Andrew had known all of their names, and could tell by the way they interacted with him that he was very well liked by all the employees.

"Wow, everybody here seems to love you, how do you remember them all?" Serena asked, a little more bluntly than she had intended. Andrew laughed at her, smiling that brilliant smile.

"It's really simple actually. I just treat them the way I would want to be treated. Just because I'm the Vice President doesn't mean I work harder or am more important." He said simply.

"But you are more important, you're the Vice President. I mean you overlook everything!" She exclaimed, not really understanding why this man was so humble in his extraordinary state.

"Well, yes I do overlook everything, but that's my job. They all do their jobs as well." He said with a glint in his eyes. "They work hard, I work hard. We're equal. I just get paid a little more than they do." He said laughing. Serena laughed as well. They finished out there tour and were on the elevator to the top floor.

"This is the top floor, where you'll be working. A few warnings though," he said with a smirk, "Mr. Shields is not too excited about having an intern, but it looks good to the press. You'll be working with the both of us, doing various jobs. He's an interesting man to say the least." He finished smiling, reminiscing about their past together.

"He sounds intimidating." Serena said with a small voice, her hands were beginning to tremble. She was never good with meeting people, especially somebody who wasn't excited to have her there.

"Oh he is, but trust me, underneath his nonchalant demeanor, he's a true softy. I would know I've known him since we were 4 years old." He said as the elevator came to a stop on the 20th floor. Serena was incredibly nervous, but she was strong.

Serena walked off the elevator and was surprised at how comfortable this floor looked, as opposed to the other floors. It was a big open floor with two offices on either side.

"We're the only ones on this floor," Andrew laughed. "It really is ridiculous, but how can you refuse Darien?" Serena smiled, and wondered when she'd meet the supposed softy. From what she had read, he wasn't a soft kind of person, not in regards to his cut-throat business tactics, or his relationships with the many women he had been spotted with.

"You're going to be here at this desk. But I must warn you, you may get bored. Very little happens up here." Andrew smiled. He bent down towards her ear and whispered, "Sometimes I go down to the other floors for a bit of fun. I can't stay cramped in an office but for so long." He laughed, as he moved away from her. "Trust me, you'll be begging to leave after a few hours."

Serena laughed, "I'm tough, I can handle a few boring hours."

"So you're telling our new intern how boring it is to work for me, huh?" said a cool voice from behind her. She immediately stiffened and turned around to face the most gorgeous man she'd ever seen in her life. It was like she couldn't breathe, but she wouldn't trade oxygen for anything if she could stare at this black haired god standing in front of her for the rest of her life.

Andrew laughed, "Darien, you know how boring you are, and it's my job to inform her of what she's getting into."

"Ah, your job, huh?" Darien said grinning. "You've got a hell of a job then."

"And it's all thanks to you, D." Andrew said with a smirk. "Serena, this is Darien Shields, my best friend, and the big boss."

Serena snapped out of her trance, and smiled at the man who stretched his hand out towards her. "Hey, nice to meet you," she said softly, taking the man's strong hand and shaking it.

'She seems so nervous, but she is gorgeous. Maybe having an intern isn't that bad of an idea.' Darien thought to himself. "And I, you. Now, don't let Andrew taint your picture of me. I'm a nice guy, I suppose." He said as he walked towards his office, knowing good and well that most people thought the complete opposite. He wasn't like Andrew, who was carelessly nice and admirable. Darien was a loner, and at most times cared for nothing but himself and his company. How Andrew and he had become friends, and for this long, he had no idea, but it was the one thing he was truly thankful for. He was the kind of guy that had gotten accustomed to being alone and liked it like that. He wasn't happy, however he wasn't unhappy, his life had taught him to be indifferent to anything that happened around him. He supposed that was why his father had given him the company so early in his life. As a 28 year old man, he was the face of a billion dollar company, pushing the boundaries just as his father had done, and his father before him. Darien sat in the chair behind his huge desk, basking in his glory. He was the king of his world, and nobody would change that. A soft tap on his office door brought him out of his gloating mood, and he scowled.

"Come in." He said flatly. His new intern walked into the office and stood there awkwardly, looking at the floor.

"Yes?" he asked. She had interrupted him in his glory, which was unheard of.

"I-I was just wondering what it is that you wanted me to do." She said timidly. His image was indeed intimidating, and Serena was already a small girl to begin with. Even as he sat at his desk, his broad shoulders and dark blue eyes made her feel even smaller than her five foot three frame allowed her.

"Nothing." He said simply. 'If I wanted something I would have told you, duh.' He said in his mind. Normally he would have gone ahead and said his thoughts aloud, but something was keeping him from relaying the harsh thoughts on the young woman.

"Okay, ummm, alright. Then I guess, I'll just be outside." She said looking up into his eyes. He nodded as he felt something deep within him, a something he had never felt before. He shrugged it off, and went back to doing anything but looking at the girl in front of him. He heard the door close and looked up and saw she was gone. He felt even more alone than he had before she walked in. 'Weird.' He commented then went to do some work.

Serena was so out of place, but Andrew had warned her, she didn't know why it felt so bad to be calmly rejected by the gorgeous man. She went to the desk and simply sat there, not really knowing what to do with herself. She got up after a couple minutes and knocked on the second office door.

"Come in," said another flat voice. Serena was beginning to think she was going to be a nuisance to both men. However, as soon as she entered Andrew's office, a smile spread across his face, making her feel welcomed.

"Bored already?" he smirked. "Come in, I'll show you what I'm doing. I mean, you are here to learn about the business industry, right?" He said as he motioned for her to sit in the chair in front of his desk. She smiled and sat down with him as they went over reports and various other things.


	2. Chapter 2

Serena was again in Andrew's office, as he explained various graphs and notes that were on the files in front of the two. They had grown close, because for the past four months that Serena had been working at Shields Inc., she had done her very few tasks and then went to his office where he taught her all the things she would need to know when her internship was over the next year. Andrew was a kind man who was patient with her as she struggled to grasp various concepts, but he was never impatient with her, and he insisted that she was a quick learner. It was one morning where they were going over their usual plans, when Darien walked into the room.

"Andrew, we've gotta talk." Darien said, his eyes cold that had almost changed to a black with their ferocity. "It's urgent." Andrew took one glance at him and looked at Serena.

"Serena, would you mind giving Darien and I a moment?" He asked, as she scrambled her things together to get out of the way of the man that was so obviously furious about something. She gave Andrew a small smile and turned to look at the dark six foot four man standing directly behind her. He still intimidated her and she was scared of him at this time, seeing him so solid and fierce. She ran to the door and closed it behind her, thankful to have gotten out of there when she did. She could hear Darien's angry voice through the door and she was glad she wasn't in Andrew's position. Had she been there, she would have ran out in terror!

Darien was livid! He didn't even have time to think about the terrified little blonde woman he had scared out of his best friend's office. What was she doing in here anyway? He pushed the thoughts out of his mind as he started yelling about the newest glitch in his company. Some of his recent acquisitions had gone terribly wrong, and the companies were losing money, and fast! Darien wasn't used to this happening, and was furious! Andrew let the man belt out his frustrations, and finally when he was done, they went over the numbers and figures for what felt like hours until they had come to a conclusion that would hopefully save them anymore losses.

"God, this is so hard." Darien sighed. Andrew laughed and looked at his friend of so many years. "You knew it would be hard, but it probably would be easier on you if you went out and had some FUN every once in a while." He worried about his friend, he looked like he was in his mid-thirties for being a young twenty year old. "Darien, you worry too much, all the time." He said in a concerned voice.

"How am I supposed to relax when things like this could happen at any time? I'm not like you." He said looking at the man in front of him, he was a great person and an even better employee.

"I know, not all of us can be so devilishly handsome." Andrew said with an air of arrogance.

"We all know who got the good looks of this friendship," Darien said with a smirk.

"Oh, really? Then why is the only woman on this floor constantly in my office, not yours?"

Darien looked at him with a look that was indistinguishable, he couldn't decide on whether he was jealous of Andrew or just annoyed that he won the argument. He decided he was just being competitive like usual.

"Well, I'm sure that if I gave her a chance, she'd rather be in my office." Andrew laughed, "Yea, right. Not with the way you just scared her."

"What? I didn't scare her." He said defiantly. He was just angry when he had come in, not a monster.

"I mean the girl practically fled from the room in fear! I don't think you could have paid her to stay in this room with you breathing fire the way you were."

"Shut up Drew." He said smiling. Andrew seemed to be the only person who could deal with his anger and not run at the sight of him.

"Whatever, now if you don't mind, I have to finish my work before my arrogant, evil, ugly boss comes in and yells at me for not getting my stuff done for the day." Andrew said. As soon as he said that, Serena walked into the office. Andrew liked her a lot, but had recently discovered that she was too young for him, she was so innocent. Well, as innocent as a girl who just got out of college could be. He had started to care about her, as a younger sister, she was thriving with energy that would bring her plenty of success in her later years. For now, he wanted to teach her as much as she could, so that she could use her energy in a positive way.

"What's up Serena? You ready to get back to work? My boss is being really hard on me today, gosh." He said grinning at Darien.

"Shut up or I'll take your job." He said getting up from the chair he had been sitting in, relinquishing it to the young woman.

"Oh, I'm soo scared! Please, I have a family and four kids!" Andrew fake pleaded.

"Why the hell would you have four kids?" Darien said with a weird face. Kids? Four? That was way too many.

"I like kids, are you taking them away from my imaginary family?" Andrew said laughing lightly. "You know that I send them to your place every weekend so that they can spend time with their loving Uncle D." Andrew laughed heartily at the look on Darien's face.

"You are so fired." He said as he walked out of the room.

Serena couldn't help but smile at the man who walked out of the room. She then turned to Andrew, whom she had developed a little crush on, but she knew things wouldn't work out like that. She sighed and sat back down into the chair that Darien had been sitting in.

"What a horrible man. I'm surprised he's married." Drew said shaking his head. At the last word Serena perked up her head, 'he's married? What? That's gotta be a joke. He's Darien Shields!'

"Wh-What? He's married?" She asked incredulously. Andrew laughed, "Yea, for five years this spring. He married her young, so the press didn't really know about it. But, I'm sure that it's going to end soon, they never seem to be around each other anymore." Andrew said with a sad nod. He remembered the good times when Darien and Lita had been so very much in love. Andrew looked at Serena, and noticed a little spark leave her eyes. He looked at her quizzically. Was there sadness in her eyes? No, that can't be it. She never even spoke to Darien. "They don't even live together anymore." Andrew added, trying to cheer up the blonde in front of him.

"Oh." Serena said. She wasn't exactly sure why she was so upset with the news that Darien was off the market. But wait, hadn't she seen him in numerous magazines with a different girl on his arm at every moment? "But wait, he's all over the tabloids with various girls, how can he be married?" She asked, completely confused.

"Ahh, yes. They both have numerous lovers, it's incredibly odd if you ask me, but I mean if it works for them, then fine. Personally, I think they want to divorce, but he's afraid of the bad publicity he would get." Darien was always concerned with the publicity he was getting, which didn't really make much sense, since he was committing adultery for the whole world to see, but that kind of publicity didn't seem to bother him as much. Andrew shook it off, and looked back to the blonde who seemed to be in a very deep train of thought.

"Are you ready to get back to work?" He asked softly, not wanting to interrupt her, but his business side was getting anxious, they had a lot to do today, and Darien's interruption had not helped.

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Serena sunk into her bubble bath, reflecting on the day she had just finished. Andrew was a great teacher, and she really felt as if she was starting to grasp the business industry, as tiring as it was. She sighed as she thought back to what Andrew had said, "Yea, he's married… five years this spring…" she couldn't seem to put two and two together, she had never heard of his wife, and he didn't wear a wedding band. The dark man confused her to no end. She spent a half hour, just soaking in her bathtub, when a knock came to her bathroom door. She screamed and stammered out a "who is it?" afraid of who it would be, she had left her door closed, right? Was it a burglar? She shut the curtain, as the person walked in.

"Surprise, girl!" Mina yelled as she yanked the curtain open, a huge bag in her hand.

"WHAT are you doing here?!" She sighed, sliding her body back under the comforting bubbles. The girl had nearly given her a heart attack, and her heart had dealt with a lot today.

"I haven't seen you in almost three weeks, and this is all you have to say? Get out of that tub, we're going out!" Mina said as her usual bubbly personality started to overpower Serena's less than excited mood. She smiled at her best friend, 'she knows me too well, even when she doesn't know I'm feeling bad, she shows up.' She grabbed a towel and got out of her hot bath, following her giggling friend to her bedroom.

After an hour of prepping and mindless chatter, the two blonde girls were ready to go out for a night of clubbing. They hadn't gone out together in months, since Serena had gotten her internship at Shields. She had forgotten how much she liked forgetting about her hard week by just relaxing and having fun with her best friend. This was what she really needed. They drove down the streets of New York and blasted their favorite music to get them ready for the night of fun they knew they'd have.

Walking into the club, Mina and Serena couldn't help but feel energized. They ran to the bar and got their regular two shots of vodka, and took to the dance floor. They danced for half the night with each other, and then with various guys that had asked them. Serena was currently dancing with a guy by the name of Malcolm, who was blonde and green eyed, very attractive in her eyes. They moved their bodies to the rhythm, laughing and having fun with each other. Mina was dancing with a guy that vaguely reminded her of Andrew, but she brushed it aside and blamed it on the five shots of vodka she had taken throughout the night. At the end of the night, she had exchanged numbers with Malcolm and he had given her a kiss on the cheek, "I'll definitely call you soon." He said smiling at her.

Something was seriously wrong with her; she was giving out her number to random guys at a club! This wasn't her normal behavior. Ever since she had been working at Shields Inc, she had let her guard fall when it came to the opposite sex. Within a few minutes, she was joined by her best friend as they hailed a cab to take them home. It had been a great night, and they were giddy; Mina had also gotten a number.

They woke up in the morning sprawled out in Serena's king size bed. She thought back to the night before and smiled at the thought of her dance partner. He had been a nice guy, and something had changed within her. She was allowing men back into her life, and she figured it was about time, she was starting to get lonely. She sighed and turned to her sleeping best friend.

"Mina? Mina wake up. It's almost noon, we've gotta get out of this bed!" She said with a smile on her face as her friend scrunched up her nose and made an indistinguishable noise.

"Get up girl!" Serena said as she began bouncing on her bed. The blonde girl laying on the bed squealed. "UGH, FINE. I'M UP!" She said turning to face her friend.

"Let's eat!" Serena said smiling, tummy growling at the same time. Mina smiled and they got ready to go to lunch. Twenty minutes later they were driving in Mina's Mercedes black convertible on their way to their favorite lunch time spot, Laselli's. As they pulled up, they were chattering way too fast for anyone other than them to really understand.

The topic of conversation turned to the events of the previous night. Both girls were smiling and blushing as they talked about the two men they had danced with the night before.

"Ugh, I hope they call!" Mina said, with a sigh and a twinkle in her eyes. "Andrew was such a good dancer." At that thought, Serena perked up, 'Andrew? Didn't he look a lot like my Andrew? Well, not mine, but my mentor-ish Andrew?' She thought about it, but in reality there must be hundreds of Andrews in New York with dirty blonde hair.

"So do I, I mean I thought about it Mina, I've had enough time to wallow in self-pity. Its time for me to let the past be the past, and move on! Malcolm seems like a nice guy and I should give him a chance."

Mina clapped her hands and smiled. "Finally! I know how we were when we were young and I'm starting to realize how childish it was." She said with a giggle. "It's time to be mature." She said with a dignified air to her voice.

They finished their lunch and headed back to Serena's to just relax and have a girls' day in, watching chick flicks and pigging out on snacks. At about six in the evening, Serena's phone rang. After gulping down the gummy bears she had been chewing, she picked up the phone.

"Hello?" she said not really paying attention to who was speaking, as she continued to watch How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. She was in love with Matthew McConnaughey and nothing would keep her away from him, or so she used to think when she was younger.

"Hi, is Serena there?" said a young man's voice.

"Uh huh, this is she." She replied silently laughing at the screen, wishing she could be Kate Hudson.

"Oh, uh, hi. This is Malcolm from the club last night, we danced and you gave me your number? I told you that I'd call." She immediately turned all of her attention to the phone, while kicking Mina and mouthing "IT'S MALCOLM" to her. Mina jumped up and motioned for her to talk.

"Oh yea! Hey, how are you?" she asked lamely, mentally kicking herself at the lack of knowledge she had when it came to guys.

"Haha, I'm doing good. I was just wondering if you'd like to go to dinner with me tomorrow night, and if you could bring your friend Mina as well? She danced with my friend last night." Serena could only think one thing, 'HELL YES.' But she knew better than to scream that into the receiver and scare the man off like that.

"Sure! Let me just ask her if she's available tomorrow night. This will only take one second."

"No problem."

She hit the mute button and looked at her friend Mina, "What are you doing tomorrow night?"

"Nothing?"

"Wrong, you're going on a double date with me! Ahhh!" she screamed as her friend finally understood what was going on, and she too joined in on the scream-session. After they had calmed down, Serena returned to the phone.

"Hey, yea she said she's cool with it." She said with a calm voice, trying not to be too excited.

"Great! Can we meet tomorrow night at 8?" He asked.

"Sure!"

They spent the next five minutes discussing plans and times, and after that they hung up. Everything seemed to be going so well in Serena's life. She had a job she loved, had made a great new friend, and was finally dating again. As happy as she felt, she still couldn't get the dark haired man out of her thoughts. But, hey he was married, what could she do about it?


	3. Chapter 3

It was five minutes to eight, and Serena and Mina were giggling and were getting excited for their double date. Serena was dressed in a silk black dress, with matching strappy heels, which made her appear to be much taller, and made her legs look leaner. Mina was dressed in similar attire, but chose to be less conspicuous and was wearing a one shouldered red dress that clung to her toned body.

"God, Mina! You're so hott!" Serena oogled at her best friend, who was spinning circles around the kitchen, then striking a pose.

"Oh will you shut up, Sere! You're hott too! Malcolm's going to love the dress!" Mina said, taking Serena by the hand and twirling her around with her. They giggled together, until a couple of minutes later, they heard a buzz at the door. They stopped their twirling, and quickly fixed their hair, shook off the nerves, then walked to the door. Serena opened it and smiled at the blonde haired man in front.

"Hey," she said smiling. Then she noticed the dirty blonde man behind him. "Andrew?!" she said almost surprised, but happy at the same time.

"Hi, Serena. I hope this won't be weird tomorrow morning." He said laughing, his brown eyes sparkling.

She smiled, "Of course not, as long as you keep teaching me." He winked at her and smiled as Mina came out to join them.

"Hey, guys!" She said smiling a bright smile.

"Wow, Mina you look gorgeous." Andrew said, handing her a rose. She blushed and took the rose.

"You too, Serena, you're stunning." Malcolm said handing her a rose as well. She laughed and accepted the rose, as they headed out to dinner.

Malcolm escorted Serena to his car, as Mina went with Andrew to his. The ride to the restaurant was a pleasant one. Serena could easily talk to Malcolm, he had a warm gentle smile and he seemed genuinely interested in what she had to say. They were laughing and talking like they had known each other for years.

Mina and Andrew were having a similar car ride, and as they got to the restaurant, they were joined by the other couple. They were seated together and had one of the most care-free and energetic dates that any of them had ever had. The four of them got along perfectly, like they were made to be together. However, as the date went on, Serena would have glimpses of her dark boss, making her shudder a bit. He had such a strong effect on her, that she couldn't get away from, and she contemplated that she had no urge to get away from it all. She couldn't fully understand why, when she had the chance to date an amazing guy like Malcolm was turning out to be; why she would pine for such a grouchy, married man. Her heart must have gone a little haywire after all those years being out of commission.

Andrew noticed how even though Serena was a midst the conversation, she was thinking about something else, quite possibly somebody else. He had gotten to know her facial expressions very well over the four months they had been working so closely together. He could tell she was thinking about Darien, as weird as he thought about the two, he had noticed Darien wasn't sleeping around anymore, not that Darien himself had really noticed it. As much as he liked Malcolm, Darien was his real best friend,and if push came to shove, he would quite obviously take his side, or maybe even push her in his direction. But, it wasn't his place to interfere. Mina, being Serena's best friend, also noticed the way she was off in some other land thinking about something. She made a mental note to ask her about it once their evening was over.

They finished out their dinner and continued their date by going to the park and just running around acting like children. Serena was really enjoying herself and her laugh was contagious to the other three surrounding her. Mina hadn't seen her friend so happy before, there was something about these guys that brought the best out of her. Unfortunately, nobody but Serena knew what she was truly thinking. Things were getting bad in her mind, she was imagining that it was he, Darien, with her instead of Malcolm, and she couldn't pinpoint why. 'Sigh, life couldn't get any harder, could it?' she pondered to herself.

Malcolm drove Serena home after a great evening, and they were still talking and laughing as they had done all night. When Malcolm reached her apartment building, he insisted that he walk her up to her door, so she let him. She hoped that things would not go to far with him, she wasn't at all ready for things like that.

They reached her door and she turned to him, smiling. "Thanks for such a great night, I really do appreciate it. I had so much fun!" It wasn't a lie, she did have a great time, even though she had wished she had been with somebody else.

Malcolm smiled his gentle smile and his green eyes twinkled. "I'm glad to hear it, I had a great night too. Maybe we could do something like this again?" He said hopeful of a second date.

Serena laughed, "Sure, why not?" Malcolm smiled at her and nodded his head. "Good answer." She smiled as she went to unlock her door, when he took her hand, and stepped forward. She had been wondering if this would happen. To her surprise, he kissed her cheek, as he had done that night at the club, winked at her and walked away. He was a gentleman and wanted to treat her as a lady. She was thankful for his sincerity and walked into her apartment, closed the door, and ran to her room. She threw herself onto her bed and began to think about her night. She smiled at how great Malcolm had been to her throughout the evening, but somewhere deep she knew it wouldn't be what she wanted. She got up and showered again, before changing into her satin night gown and going to bed. She wanted to be well rested when she saw Darien again in the morning. She fell asleep, having dreams about a dark haired man who would sweep her off her feet.

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Darien arrived an hour early the next morning. Andrew had called him the night before telling him about the double date he had been on with Serena, and his previous-to-their-date good friend Malcolm. It didn't make sense to him why he was so angry that the petite blonde had gone out with one of his friends. I mean, she was obviously a gorgeous girl, and had probably dated numerous guys. He was married for god's sake, and he was thinking about dating a young woman. 'What? Since when was I thinking about dating her?' He brushed it off and walked out of the elevator and onto his floor. He wasn't really expecting anybody to be here so early, it was 7 am, and nobody really showed up until 9. He was very comfortable with the quiet in his office, it was the only place where he felt like he belonged. He was startled to see the petite blonde, sitting at her desk, lightly tapping her foot reading over files. She looked so serene, with her hair falling into her face, her bright blue eyes darting over the pages. It seemed like she had a nervous habit of biting her bottom lip, in what to Darien was a very seductive move. He didn't really know how to break her out of her contemplative mode. She breathed in heavily, and let out a sigh. He smiled a small smile and cleared his throat to get her attention.

Serena scrambled together and stood up as she looked at the towering man above her, he had a trace of a smile on his usually stern face. She smiled nervously at him.

"Good morning, sorry I'm here so early." She said trailing off. His presence seemed to make her uncomfortable, probably the opposite way that Malcolm made her feel. He mentally cursed his friend.

"No, its okay, I just couldn't get much sleep last night, so I just decided to come in. It's so peaceful this early, it helps calm me." He said, absentmindedly giving her more information than he intended to. Serena looked up at him.

"Really? Neither could I." She said looking up at his deep blue eyes. She smiled warmly at him, and he grinned. It was nice when he smiled, it lit up his dark eyes, and it made her weak.

"Well, since neither of us could sleep, let's get to work. Which files were you reading? Since Andrew isn't here, I'll help you." He said hoping for a chance to get closer to her, she confused him in a way that he had to understand.

"Really?" She said her eyes wide, twinkling with excitement. "I mean, it'd be amazing to have the Darien Shields teaching me about the business industry. People would kill to have this chance." She said with a smirk. He liked the smile she gave him.

"Ahh, yes. I'm sure every man would love to be in my shoes too. I'm just the king." He said with an arrogant smile. Serena's heart fluttered, as Darien moved a chair to sit next to her. Darien knew that the woman had no idea what kind of an affect she had on him. He placed his chair next to hers as she sat back down.

They spent the next three hours working together on the files she had pulled up on one of his most recent acquisitions. Serena marveled at the genius that Darien was when it came to the ins and outs of the market. Even all the time she spent with Andrew, she had picked up some great advice from Darien. She was starting to feel really comfortable with him; the heat that radiated off of his body was something she wished she could have every morning.

Andrew was watching them from his office door, they had barely noticed him when he had walked in about an hour ago. They seemed to be in their own little world. Andrew could see the sparks flying in their eyes. They had been laughing and going over the notes, and he hadn't seen Darien nearly this happy in years, back in their childhood. Andrew smiled and went back to his desk. He would confront Darien about it later.

"Well, you really are a quick learner." Darien said to the smiling girl in front of him. She turned to him and flashed a bright smile. It was a great thing to get a compliment like that from the man who was on top of the business ladder.

"Thanks," she said brightly. "That means a lot coming from you."

"Yea, it does, doesn't it?" he said as he leaned back into his chair, flashing Serena an arrogant smile, stretching out his long, lean body. Serena couldn't help but admire his broad chest, and strong arms. His chest led to his torso, which she was itching to unveil from the button up shirt, and blazer he was wearing.

"So arrogant." She said at the man whom she was feeling things for, rather unnecessary things. He laughed at her, and she wished he would do it more often. His whole face would light up and he'd look years younger, making her heart ache even more.

"So, is there anything else you'd like to go over with me? Or can I go back to my job now?" he asked. Serena laughed at him.

"I'm much more fun than a quiet, cooped up office, I'm sure."

"Not even close, blondie." He said laughing at her as he got up. She rolled her eyes at him and gathered up the papers they had gone over. The rest of the day passed with minimal excitement. Serena had a great day, and usually walked into both offices and said bye for the evening. She went into Andrew's office first. It had been the first time she hadn't spent the entire day working with him.

"Hey, stranger, you ditched me today, I'm very hurt." Andrew said clutching his heart, and pouting at her. She smiled gently.

"You know you're my favorite guy to work with here." She said shaking her head, laughing at his sarcasm.

"Is he really? And all this time, I thought we were bonding this morning." Darien said as he slid into the room, and sat down in the chair in front of Andrew's desk.

"Oh, I mean, yea we were. I mean, uhh, it was really nice being with you this morning. I mean, you know, going over the files." She finished awkwardly; she could feel the blood burning in her cheeks, full of embarrassment.

Darien reveled in seeing Serena blush like that. He wished he could make her blush like that all the time, for various other reasons. "Don't sweat it, Andrew is always the favorite. I've gotten used to it."

"No point in fighting, eh?" Andrew laughed. "Well, Serena we will see you tomorrow morning."

"Good work today, Andrew has really taught you well." Darien threw her a handsome smile, and she blushed again. He laughed silently to himself, 'this girl is so funny.'

"Yea, thanks. Good night, don't spend too much time in here tonight. Get some rest." She said, her motherly tones kicking in.

"We'll rest when we're dead, too much to do around here to waste time on that." Andrew said, winking at Darien. Serena laughed as she headed out the door. 'Men,' she said to herself as she walked to the elevator and to her car.


	4. Chapter 4

Reviews please! This is my first story, so I could use all the reviews I can get!

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Serena had just woken up early again, it was five thirty in the morning and still, she couldn't go back to sleep. It seemed to happen whenever she went out with Malcolm, and she had been out with him three times this week, and all three nights she had were sleepless. She rolled over and got out of bed, deciding that another early day in was necessary. The reason she went in at those hours had become obvious to her, she was hoping that Darien would come in early as well. This week she had spent one of her mornings with him, and it was probably the highlight of her week. Things at Shields Inc were going incredibly, she was now switching days between Andrew and Darien on who would educate her on the numerous happenings within the company. Both men were different when it came to teaching her. Andrew was a calm and collected teacher who went over every detail with her, while Darien thought quietly to himself and had her describe the business tactics used to accomplish each acquisition. They were both becoming two of her favorite guys.

Malcolm and she had been on numerous dates the past two weeks, and she couldn't help but have herself feel closer to him. They laughed and got along perfectly, and were typically on the same page with everything. He was a great guy and she knew she was lucky to have him there for her. She still had trouble zoning her conscience out so she wouldn't replace him with images of Darien, but at times she let herself do it. She mostly replaced Malcolm with Darien when they were kissing, when her eyes closed she imagined the dark haired man she spent her nights dreaming about. It sent ripples down her spine, and she felt guilty that Malcolm thought he was doing this to her.

Serena got to the building an hour and a half after she had woken up. She decided to take the stairs, as much as she hated the thought, it was the only form of exercise she had been getting over the past months she had spent in this building. Her body was going to crash if she didn't start working out again. After a long and strenuous climb, Serena reached the top floor and walked in, breathing heavily, sliding her black pumps back on, and wiping sweat off her brow.

"I am never doing that again!" she said to herself.

"Yea, you're crazy to take the stairs, come on blondie, that's what elevators are for."

Every time she heard his voice, she still got chills and got nervous. Darien was walking out of his office, towards her with that goofy grin on his face, the one that made his eyes sparkle with mischief. She laughed at him, and walked towards her desk.

"It's the only exercise I seem to be able to fit into my busy work schedule." She said eyeing her boss.

"Oh, right, actually I've been meaning to talk to you about your schedule." He said, hiding his nervousness, by putting on his business voice. Serena looked up at him, her blue eyes shining with anticipation. 'Maybe he's going to ask me out, oh no Serena stop! He's a married man! You can't do this.'

"What's up?"

"Well, two weeks from now Andrew and I have to go to the annual Shields Inc business convention, and I was thinking that you should tag along. I mean there's nothing better than being around a bunch of guys wearing suits, is there?" he asked a glint in his eye. Serena just looked at the gorgeous man; he wanted her to accompany him on one of the most important business conferences she had ever heard about? This day couldn't get any better! Darien noticed her blue eyes dance to life as she realized what she was being invited to.

"Of course I'll go! When? Where?" she asked, frantic, and immensely excited.

"This year, we're going to the Bahamas."

She couldn't help it, but her mouth dropped. "That's where your big stuffy meetings are? The Bahamas?"

"Well a lot of our employees use this time as vacation, the company takes care of the majority of the cost, so we try to make it a place where a family could have fun."

"Wow, I can't wait!" She said almost jumping up and down, unable to believe the incredible chance she had just been given.

"Now, shall we get on to business today?" Darien said, sliding into his regular spot at Serena's desk. They never worked in Darien's office; he preferred not to, he said it was too formal. What he really meant was that his office was for the boring things he did on his own, and he didn't want to change the atmosphere that they had gotten along so well in previously. He also wasn't able to sit this close to her, and he loved the feeling of her being at his side. Serena sat down and watched Darien as he opened the files and asked her to give him her opinion. Darien liked to keep Serena on her toes, she had a great mind for business, and her ideas were becoming sharper. He also loved the way she talked, how when she got confused, she would bite on her bottom lip, which consequently caused him to feel a fire in his groin. He also loved when she got an idea, her face would immediately light up and she would talk so passionately, it made him want to return her passion, but in a different way. They finished up their session, and went on to do their regular work.

Serena was busy faxing all kinds of memos to various departments, and was really focused on her work, when she felt arms wrap around her waist, and a firm body behind her. She freaked and nearly dropped all the papers she was holding, as the man picked her up and planted a kiss on her neck. She laughed as the blonde man put her down, and she turned in his arms, smiling at him. She was happy to see Malcolm, she loved his company and he did make her happy. Things were getting so complicated for her, but, then again, Darien was married, so she had to make due with the man in front of her.

"Surprise!" Malcolm said with a smile, bending down and capturing her lips in a soft kiss. He pulled away and smiled at the beauty in front of him.

"What are you doing here? Don't you have to be at work?" she asked.

"A man can't take his girlfriend out to lunch? Mina's here too, she's grabbing Andrew." He said, kissing her again. She smiled at him, and couldn't help but be touched.

"I think you're too good for me." She said, and she meant that. He didn't deserve the lies she was throwing at him, everyday.

Darien was standing in his office, glaring at his college-friend kissing Serena. It filled him with a burning hate that he didn't know he could even feel. 'Why is he here? I can't stand to see the two of them together. God, I wish that was me holding her like that.' He paced the floors of his office, then went to his desk and pulled up a file, it didn't really matter what. He knew that Serena would come in sooner or later to tell him she was off to lunch, and he didn't want her to think he cared that her _boyfriend_ was here to take her out. 'Damn you, Malcolm!' he thought as a soft tap came to the door. He pulled himself together, and motioned for Serena to come in, Malcolm was not far behind her.

"Hey, Darien! Long time no see, how are you?" asked Malcolm.

Darien looked at the man he used to spend the majority of his time with, and put on a fake smile, "I'm good, nice to see you." He turned his attention to Serena, who was biting her lip, in that way that made him want her.

"Hey, I'm taking my lunch break. Do you want anything?"

Darien noticed that she seemed really nervous, as if she were embarrassed at the fact that Malcolm was standing right behind her, his hand lightly around her waist. He noticed that she slyly twisted her small body out of his grasp and moved closer towards the desk.

"No, I'm fine." He lied through his teeth. She smiled at him, and walked out, her head down. As soon as the door shut, Darien dropped his head into his hands, he had to get his emotions in control. He had to try something, and before Serena and Malcolm became too serious. He laughed to himself, 'at least she's not the one legally tied down to somebody else.' Well, either way, she was all he could think about now. Another knock came to his door, and he looked up as Andrew walked in, and quietly shut the door behind him.

"You sure you don't want to come with us?" he could tell his friend was upset, but it wasn't the time for him to question him, not with everybody standing outside the door.

"Don't want to ruin the happy couples' lunch date." He said his voice dripping with sarcasm. He wouldn't be able to sit for an hour with the two couples being happy together, while he slowly died inside.

"Alright, well just so you know, we're going to your place after work tonight. I got something important to talk to you about."

"Ugh, fine. Actually why don't we all just take the day off? I mean it is Friday, and I've had a rough week." Andrew examined Darien's face; he was a master at disguising his emotions, so he let it go.

"Well then, I'll be over as soon as I'm out of lunch." Andrew closed the door behind him, and walked over to his blonde girlfriend, taking her into his arms and kissing her temple. Mina smiled and put her arm around his waist as they walked out. Andrew was happy with Mina, and things were going really well between them. She had so much life in her, and it baffled him where she stored all that energy. She turned to him and kissed him, lingering there for a while.

Malcolm and Serena had just gotten onto the elevator and were talking and laughing like they usually did. They seemed to be a perfect couple, laughing, touching and occasionally kissing. The four of them went out to a simple restaurant for lunch, and went on their separate ways afterwards. Serena and Malcolm stayed together for the whole day, just laughing and talking. They had simply spent the day together, just walking around laughing and loving life. They had reached Serena's apartment at about eleven that night, and they were lying on her couch watching a movie on demand. Serena yawned, and Malcolm pulled her closer to her. He liked having her close in his arms, but he felt as if she didn't trust him. He pulled her face towards him, and took her lips with his. She responded well to him, and pushed him against the couch. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her body to his own. The pressure of her small body on his was beginning to drive him crazy. He continued to pull her body closer to his as they got deeper into the kiss, letting their tongues intertwine sending hot sparks through Malcolm's body. Serena was getting wary, she knew she had to end the kiss soon, she didn't want it to get too far, but it felt so good to be in somebody's arms.

Malcolm could sense Serena was getting uncomfortable, so he slowly loosened his hold on her waist, and pulled his mouth away from hers, as much as he hated to do it. He smiled at her, and she kissed him one last time as she got up. Andrew stood up and took her hand.

"I think it's time for me to go babe, will I see you tomorrow?" he asked, pulling her back to his body, kissing her lips again, savoring her taste. He pulled away and started kissing down her neck, as she giggled at him.

"I guess, if you really want to see me again." She laughed as he continued to trace her neckline. He laughed into her neck, and looked up at her again.

"Of course I do. Can I call you tomorrow? I promise not too early."

"Yea, that's fine." She said as they walked to her door, she opened the door and Malcolm stepped outside. Serena leaned against the door frame, smiling.

"Till tomorrow," he said as he winked at her and walked down the hallway. She smiled at his retreating back and closed her apartment door, locking it. She cleaned up her living room and went up to bed. She couldn't help but feel like she was starting to fall for the blonde man, but wait; didn't she have a thing for Darien? Well, he was her boss and for god's sake the man was gorgeous, who wouldn't have a thing for him? She was going to let him go, it wasn't healthy to kill a relationship like this.

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Darien was sitting in his study, thinking, just evaluating everything that was going on in his mind about that gorgeous blonde girl. He knew how much he wanted her, to hold her, to feel her body beneath his, to have those eyes burn with passion at him. He groaned and slammed his fist down onto his desk.

"Don't take it out on the desk, honey." said a cool, sexy voice from behind him. Darien turned, thinking to himself, 'she couldn't have come at a more frustrating time.' Lita was standing there in a skin tight dark green dress, her long legs were unsheathed as she walked towards him, with a sway that used to drive him crazy. She came up behind him and slid her hands down his chest, and put her lips to his ear.

"Happy to see your wife?" she whispered seductively, licking his earlobe. He took her hands and pulled them off him.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with your lover?" he said, his eyes cold. Lita giggled as she placed herself in his lap.

"Oh she's here with me, but I told you, I still like certain parts about you." She said, taking his hands and placing them around her waist.

"What, your girlfriend doesn't have the right stuff for you?" he said coldly, uncoiling his hands from her body. Lita sighed, and leaned in and started kissing his neck, and nibbling on his ear. He couldn't deny the fact that he needed to get laid, it had been months. Maybe that's what he needed to get Serena out of his mind, but as soon as her name popped into his head, he pushed Lita off of him.

"Lita, not right now. I have so much to think about. My conference is in two weeks, I need to get things straight." He said, not really thinking about the conference. Lita sighed, and got off his lap.

"Always about work, it was even like that when we were first together." Lita said, her green eyes sad.

"It's my job." He said, not looking at her.

Lita laughed sadly, she couldn't have really expected anything else from him. She knew him better than most people. Darien had always chosen work over her, it was the reason she couldn't be with him any longer.

She sighed, "Well, Darien, I guess I'll see you when you get back?" He could never really refuse her anything, so he nodded.

"Yea, I should be back and done within a month." She smiled, leaned over and kissed him, a long delicate kiss.

"You know, I miss us, I miss you." Lita said as she walked out of the room, Darien's blue eyes followed her figure out of the door. Things in his life were so complicated, in fact, they were too complicated.

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After another hour of mindless thoughts, a knock came to his study door. Darien groaned as another person interrupted him, he had been having a nice day dream about Serena and him on a beach. 'God, I really need to stop thinking about this girl.'

"Earth to Darien, what's going on, man?"

"Nothing." He lied, strictly out of habit. He knew very well that Andrew wouldn't believe him. He turned to the man he'd known since the age of 4.

"Come on, I can tell you're beating yourself up about this Serena vs. Lita ordeal." He said simply.

"What? I'm not beating myself up over anybody. There is no Serena vs. Lita." He said looking up at Andrew with a fierce gaze. Andrew simply laughed; he was the only person he knew that could ignore his hard gazes. Andrew sat across from his friend and looked at him, then sighed.

"Come on, you've got a thing for Serena. I mean a normal person wouldn't catch it, but I mean we've been best friends for 24 years. You have to make a move soon, D, or you'll lose her."

"I know, I know, but she doesn't have the same feelings for me. I mean, you see her when I'm around, she's distant and scared." He smiled to himself as he thought back to the way she would bite her lip nervously at him; the effect he had on her made him smile.

"Darien, you're blind. The girl is crazy about you, but if you don't act soon, she's going to stick with Malcolm." At the sound of his name, his blood began to boil. There was no way he would allow her to end up in his arms.

"She wouldn't go for me, I'm a married man!" he yelled. Andrew didn't even flinch at the sudden outburst. He had known it would be difficult to get Darien to think about Serena, or to act on his feelings.

"Listen, Darien, she's holding out on Malcolm, she's trying not to get too attached to him right now, so this is your best time to strike." Serena was horrible at hiding her emotions, the only man who couldn't decipher them, was Darien, who sat there, contemplating the words he had been hearing.

"Fine, I'll do something." He said, nonchalantly. He didn't know whether or not he truly meant it, I mean she deserved a man who was capable of giving her everything she wanted, and he was a grouchy, bad tempered man.

"Hey, I'm going to go meet Mina at her place, so I'm going to go."

"Oh, yea, how are you two? Did you already invite her to the Bahamas?"

Andrew laughed at his friend as he stood up, "Yea, I did." Darien groaned mentally, how unfortunate the week would be to see the two of them together, all intimate.

"But, she can't go. She's got a case she has to finish up before the end of the month, so you won't have to worry about seeing us together." He said sensing his friend's disposition. Darien hated his best friend so much at this point.

"God, I hate how you know everything! Isn't there something that you don't know?"

"Please, I know everything. You should be used to this by now, D." Andrew said as he laughed his way out of his study, as Darien threw a book at his retreating figure. He knew that he could count on Andrew to lighten up the mood for him. Darien got up from his study, and went to his room where he took a hot shower, then climbed into bed. Hopefully, he would be able to come up with a sure fire plan as he slept.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: thanks for the reviews! I'll try to update as fast as I can, but I do have a job, so just bear with me!

Also, I do not, and never will, own Sailor Moon! That goes for every chapter I have posted, and will post!

Happy reading!

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Serena woke up the next morning, completely refreshed. She had finally come to the decision last night that she would no longer yearn for Darien. It was killing her relationship with Malcolm and he didn't deserve it in the least. She stretched in her bed, yawning and got up to shower.

As she climbed out of the shower, drying her hair off, her phone rang in her bedroom, knowing it was Malcolm, she smiled and ran to pick it up.

"Good morning!" she said, incredibly cheerful.

"Somebody woke up on the right side of the bed this morning." Darien said from the other side of the receiver. Serena was in shock, she looked down at the caller I.D. and it flashed "Shields, Darien" in green writing.

"Oh, wow, Darien, it's you. I wasn't expecting your call." She said, immediately fidgeting as she sat on the edge of her bed, wondering why in the hell he had called her. Darien, on the other side of the phone, was considering that he had gone mental. He had actually called her, it was the most out of character thing he had ever done.

"Yea, sorry." He said, he hadn't thought this far through, now what was he going to say? He smacked his head as he continued to get more frustrated about his situation. He was acting like a pre-teen, asking out a girl for the first time in his life. He hadn't done this in such a long time, he normally stuck to one night flings.

"Sooo, what can I help you with?" Serena asked gently, after hearing nothing but silence on the other end for nearly half a minute, which had seemed like an eternity to both.

"Oh, right. Well, I was wondering, if you would like, to, come into the office today? I was about to go in and work on something new, and I thought you'd appreciate the lesson." If he hadn't been in his study which was on the first floor of his house, he would have thrown himself out of the nearest window that would have guaranteed death. This was the most humiliating thing he had ever done.

Serena was surprised at his question, and couldn't really understand why he was so eager to show her this new acquisition. "Well, I suppose I could, but only a couple of hours. I'm supposed to make plans with Malcolm today…" she said trailing off. She didn't know if mentioning him was a bad idea or not, and she couldn't tell with his response either.

"No, I only need as little time as you can give me. I don't want to keep you for too long." Darien was furious, 'God, man you might as well hand over your balls!'

"Okay, great. Can I meet you there in an hour? I need to call him and set our plans." She wanted to kick herself for mentioning Malcolm again. Maybe she felt as though she had to mention him so that he knew she wasn't crazy about him. Or maybe she was trying to encourage herself by choosing Malcolm over Darien. Either way, she still felt like an idiot for the way she was handling this situation.

"That's fine. See you then." And as quickly as he had called, he had hung up the phone. 'As soon as she leaves the office, I'm throwing myself out of that 20 story building.' He thought to himself.

Serena put the phone back onto the receiver and looked at it. 'Seriously?' she asked herself. 'The day after I decide that I want to pursue Malcolm is the day he calls me? What kind of a sick twisted world is this?' Serena had to hear his voice, just so she could be sure again, so she dialed his number. On the second ring, she heard his voice.

"Hey Serena, I was so close to calling you. Thank goodness you're up!"

"Yea, I've been up for a while now."

"Wow, and it's only eleven!" he mocked her, laughing into the receiver. She could imagine him laughing, and smiled.

"Shut up, listen I have to go in to the office today, Darien said that he had something to show me." She didn't know if he would find it odd, or what.

"That's Darien for you, calling in everybody to work on a Saturday morning. What time do you think you'll be done?"

"I'm not sure," she started.

"Knowing Darien and his work ethic, I'm sure you'll be out by dinner time." He chuckled, he knew very well Darien's work habits, after all they had been close friends in college. He could remember the times that Darien refused to sleep just so he could remain at the top of his class. Why would he have changed when he was heading one of the leading businesses in the country?

"Stop, I'm sure I'll be out soon." Serena couldn't understand how generous and understanding Malcolm was, he was definitely pushing Darien out of the picture now.

"Don't sweat it, I have some work that I can catch up on, so whenever you're done and want to do something, call me. Okay?"

"I will, I can't wait to see you." She said, being completely honest.

"I can't wait to see you either." She smiled and hung up the phone and went to get ready for another day at Shields Inc.

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Darien and Serena had been going over some files for two hours straight, and Serena was getting tired of it. This was one of her two days off a week she got, and instead she was back in the office, with Darien. Normally, she wouldn't have been so upset to have him so close to her body, but she had firmly decided that she was for Malcolm. As much as her mind was telling her to focus on the paper, she couldn't help but be more interested in the way his eyes were turning soft, and the way his body was curved towards hers, and his strong arms around the back of her chair. Her body was crying out to touch his, and she had never wanted anything so badly!

Darien couldn't help but feel his body moving towards her, curving around it, trying to feel her warmth. His arm was around her chair so he wouldn't fall over with the lean he had going on so that he could be closer to Serena. He could smell her hair, her skin, and it intoxicated him, it was so rich and sweet. What he wouldn't give to have her body pressed against his. All of a sudden his attention was pulled back to the desk which was cluttered with papers.

"Are you okay Darien?" she asked, turning at him to look him in the eyes. Darien couldn't hear what she was saying, because when she turned to him, her face was too close to his, and her body came within a few inches of his own, it was unbearable to have her right within his grasp and not able to reach out and touch the soft skin on her face.

"Darien? Darien? Are you okay? You look sick. Darien, answer me!" she was almost frantic, he wasn't answering her, and it felt like his eyes weren't really looking at her, but through her. He finally snapped out of it.

"Oh, sorry Serena. I guess I just blanked, maybe it was a bad idea to work on a Saturday." He said, a bit ticked that she had interrupted his fantasy with her as the lead role. It was getting too dangerous for this. She sighed at him, and smiled, shaking her head in a motherly fashion.

"Darien, you need some fun in your life. What were you planning on doing today?" she asked, looking seemingly interested.

"Go over paperwork at home in my study."

Serena laughed at him, he had answered as if there had been no other alternative, like it was the most obvious answer in the world.

"You really need to get out of this office, and really? Do you only own suits? You need to learn how to loosen up. Being boring like that makes you age quicker." Serena was trying to kill some of the previous awkwardness by talking in all the quiet spots. It seemed to be working as he looked at her with a weird look.

"All I have is this company, what else would I devote my time to?" 'besides you,' he added to himself.

"Anything, lay on the couch and watch TV, it's healthy for you!"

"No." he said sternly. This girl was insane, Darien Shields could not sit around being lazy when there were hundreds of other companies to be bought, sold and developed.

"Wow, Darien, if I didn't have plans tonight I would teach you how to have fun."

"I know how to have fun." He said letting his anger get to him. He moved away and stood up from the blonde, immediately regretting it as he lost her scent, and made her recoil, she was scared of him again! 'This was a disaster of a day!'

"I was just, you know, trying to, I guess, lighten the mood, and-and, show you how to relax." She said, her blue eyes wide and spilling with remorse.

"I'm sorry if I upset you. How about next weekend, you 'teach me to have fun.' Will that be okay?" he asked, suddenly getting excited. This was a perfect way to get her alone, and try to make his move. She smiled brightly as she stood up too.

"Perfect!"

He rolled his eyes, "Now get out of here before I drag you down into boredom with me." Serena smiled, gathered her things and walked to the elevator. As she walked into the elevator, she turned to Darien.

"I promise you won't regret this, it will be fun." He brushed her off, leaving her ego a bit wounded, but he wouldn't notice that as the elevator doors closed.

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Serena was lying on the couch in Malcolm's arms, thinking to herself about what had happened earlier in the day. She really did feel bad for Darien, who was constantly thinking about work, and nothing else. 'Nobody should live like that, always worried, always going over paperwork. He needs to get out and enjoy life.' That's when she came to her idea, 'I'll be the one who gets him out of his shell, somebody has to teach him not to be so stuffy.' It seemed like the perfect plan, it placed her in his life as a friend, and that's what she could be for him, it's what he needed, in fact, it may be the only thing he didn't have (besides Andrew). Serena curled into Malcolm's chest, smiling and happy at her brilliance. She shut her eyes, breathed in deep his scent, and fell asleep. Her night of sleep was very calm and peaceful, without dreams or interruptions.

Serena awoke in the morning, sprawled out in her bed. She hugged her pillow and smiled as she realized Andrew must have put her there at some point in the night. On her bedside table, was a note scribbled to her in cramped, untidy handwriting, which obviously meant a male had written it.

'Good morning beautiful, last night was awesome, falling asleep with you in my arms. I just hate that I had an emergency call early this morning. Dinner tonight? – Malcolm.'

Serena smiled and quickly called him, setting dinner plans at his apartment later on that evening. She had scheduled a shopping trip with Mina for the greater part of her day, so she got ready to meet her best friend.

The two girls talked and talked as they went through the mall buying all kinds of things they knew they didn't need, but couldn't go without. They were girls, and it was clothes and makeup they couldn't refuse a good bargain when they saw one, it wasn't lady like. As they combed through bathing suits at a local boutique, they were talking animatedly about Serena's trip to the Bahamas.

"God, I can't believe I can't go! I would give anything to join you guys for a full week and a half of lounging around in the tropics." Mina sighed, angry to have turned down Andrew's request for her to join her. It was really making her sad that she wouldn't be able to see him for almost two weeks.

"Are you sure you can't have somebody take your case?" Serena would have loved it if her best friend could visit with her. "You'll have plenty of time to work on the details while we're in meetings."

Mina sighed, "No, my client wants to be in every single detail of his claim. Nobody else will take such a pain in the ass. Maybe they gave him to me as an initiation into the real world of law." She said, frowning.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, its not like Malcolm is going to be there."

"Did you even invite him?" she asked.

"Well, no. I mean, if you aren't coming, then it'd just be weird to have him there-"

"When you could be alone with Darien?" Mina finished Serena's sentence and turned to her with knowing eyes.

"No!"

"Serena, what's the deal? I've noticed how you change when you talk about him. There's something else."

Serena glared at her friend, how dare she think that there was something else! But, hadn't there been? She had been thinking of him in different ways, but that was the past, she was over it! Wasn't she? She had to be.

"There's nothing. Maybe I thought about him like that before, but I've got Malcolm."

"Don't use Malcolm as a way to get around your feelings, you like Darien, I can tell."

"Well could you tell that he was married, yea and for five years?" Serena asked her friend, who stood there with her jaw open.

"No way! Darien is married? You're joking!"

"Nope, Andrew told me himself, but they don't even live together. Andrew said he was sure they wouldn't last any longer, they don't see each other ever. He said you could barely call it a marriage anymore." Serena laughed as she added, "So now what do you have to say about me 'getting around my feelings'?"

"I say you still have them. Would you listen to yourself? You just gave me an hour long explanation on why you could declare him as a single man. If you didn't like him, you would have just said, 'yes, he's married.' Get around that one, Meatball." Mina smiled her winning smile and stalked off looking for more bathing suits.

"Ugh, I hate you! I like Malcolm!" Serena said after her blonde friend.

"I know you do, I just think you like Darien more, even if he is married and all."

Serena rolled her eyes at the girl and picked out four new bathing suits and ran to try them on. She hadn't been somewhere tropical in years, and was in dire need of new bathing suits. After she tried the first one on, she showed Mina who immediately gagged.

"Oh my goodness, how old are you, 75? I mean really, Sere, if you want Darien to even take a look at you, you've got to wear something that at least fits your age group." She said, walking into her fitting room and picking which suits she hated, which turned out to be all of them.

"I'll be back with different ones. And please, for the love of god, change out of that before somebody sees you in it." It took Mina less than 10 minutes to find all new bathing suits in a bunch of different colors for her.

"Try these on, and no, you don't have a choice." Mina said as she saw that Serena was about to argue.

"Stupid best friends. They ruin everything." Serena said to herself, as she tried on the new bathing suits. It wasn't that she didn't like bikinis, she just felt like she didn't have the confidence in her to wear one. Girls who wore bikinis were confident in the way they looked, which was why they could show so much skin. Serena didn't have confidence oozing out of her from every orifice. She never complained about her body, she just needed that touch of pure confidence!

Serena ended up buying all five of the bathing suits Mina had gotten for her. She couldn't believe how well her friend knew her, they had been perfect. They left the mall, very content on the items they had bought (which was a considerable amount) and headed in their separate directions; one to Andrew's and the other to Malcolm's.

-------------------------

Serena went straight to Malcolm's apartment for dinner, excited to just sit around and be with him, he comforted her in a way she couldn't resist. She got to his door and he let her in, giving her a quick, but fulfilling kiss. Serena smiled as she looked up at him, and kissed him again, before skipping into his apartment. Malcolm smiled at Serena and laughed to himself, as she spun around to face him, her eyes twinkling.

"Smells good, what are we having?"

"I brought you a treat." He said with a smirk on his face, as he led her to the kitchen. Serena laughed as she saw the fast food bags on the counter.

"You know me so well." She laughed, turning and kissing him again. They sat and ate and talked for the majority of the night. Serena didn't know why, but she couldn't stop herself from kissing Malcolm, and appreciating him. Of course, he didn't mind at all, but the girl couldn't stop smiling when she was with him. Unfortunately for them, it was a Sunday night, which meant early wake-ups for them both.

Serena frowned as she stood in Malcolm's doorway.

"What's wrong?" he asked, taking her in his arms.

"I just don't want to leave, that's all. I really like being with you."

Malcolm kissed her again, a deep kiss that almost sent sparks down Serena's back, she was so close to feeling them! He pulled away from her, and kissed her forehead.

"I like being with you too."

Serena smiled, kissed him quickly, and then ran down the stairs to her car. She drove home, being happy about her current situation. She had seen Malcolm three days in a row, and she was truly excited about seeing him next.

As she drove home in her car, she re-evaluated her evening with Malcolm, and tried to understand why she had suddenly grown so attached to him. Serena hadn't felt like this in such a long time, she didn't know what to call it. On the one hand she was beginning to fall for Malcolm, who had demonstrated his patience and the fact that he learned the small details about her life. Then on the other hand she had Darien, whom she shared nothing with, but couldn't help but feel pulled into his direction, as if she was the tide and he was the moon. Serena sighed and finally slid under her covers, falling into a peaceful sleep, with light and dark dream sequences. Things were getting too difficult, and she could only understand that things would get even harder.

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Well there you go! I hope you enjoyed it, I've already gotten through half of the next chapter so expect that one soon!

As always, reviews would be very helpful! Tell me what you like, what'd you like to see more of, and what you hated!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

A/N: So here's the next piece you all have been waiting for! Sorry it took longer than usual, but I like having the next chapter written before posting one so that I can make sure they flow well, and I had so much work this week! But, here you go, hope you enjoy!

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The week leading up to Darien and Serena's "fun" adventure, left them both excited. Serena had been in higher spirits than usual, which everyone around her picked up on. Darien was even showing outward signs of joy, which was very rare when there was so much to be done; there was less than a week until they were to be in the Bahamas for their conferences. In regular circumstances, Darien would not have even considered doing anything the weekend before his busiest and most crucial convention, but the thought of the two of them having fun, alone, together was what kept driving him through the days. His thoughts were constantly plagued with ideas of what the two would be doing. He could only think of one "fun" thing to do with her, and every time he began thinking about that, he had to stop himself.

Darien was sitting at his desk, working on the last bits of the schedule for the weekend. He was trying to keep in mind that his employees deserved a vacation, and attempted to leave as much free time as possible. He knew what this week meant to the others who worked with him. It was a chance for them to relax with the families they were normally so deprived of. Growing up the way he did, he had no intention of being the reason other children would grow up without a loving, close family. A tap came to his door that brought him out of his thoughts and his scheduling.

"What?" he asked, rather harshly. He was trying to finish all his work ahead of time so that he could have Serena fax the schedule to everybody else. His door opened as he continued to evaluate the time slots he was filling out. 'There are 9 days of business, minus the weekends, and I have 29 companies presenting. That's too many companies in too short of time; I have to eliminate a few.'

"Darien?" a soft voice called his name. He continued to stare blankly at the screen, trying to shift hours in his mind.

"Yes?" he said absent-mindedly. He really did have to get this schedule down.

"Um, well, just, it's your turn today."

"To do what?" his eyes never left his screen as he continued to rearrange and eliminate various companies from his mental list.

"To go over the company." Serena said timidly. She didn't know what to say to him, he was so focused on the screen in front of him. She watched his face, free of emotion, do calculations and various things in his mind. His dark eyes shifting as he stared at the screen.

Darien finally peeled his eyes off his screen and looked at the young woman in front of him. She was dressed in a black dress that clung to her curves, gently. Her hair was loosely tied at her neck, which she was nervously twirling around in her delicate fingers. He sighed at her.

"This is what we're going to do. I've got to organize the trip, so you're going to help me do that. Okay?" It would be easier to schedule it with another person's help. Usually he and Andrew outlined it, but she could help.

"Alright, where do you want me?" As soon as the words came out she blushed, as Darien imagined the various answers to that question.

"Bring that chair over here, so we can get started."

She pulled the chair next to his and sat down, examining the computer screen. For the next two hours, they sketched out various schedules where the companies would each get a short amount of time to speak. They were able to schedule so well, that the days could start in the mid morning and only last three to four hours, maximizing the amount of time spent outside the convention. After they had finished, Serena replaced the chair, smiled at the man then left. He could feel it, they were becoming closer. However, she was still a bit scared of him, which he wanted to remedy as quickly as possible.

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By the end of the work day Friday, Darien and Serena had become accustomed to working alone in Darien's office. They were much more comfortable here, rather than out in the open. It seemed as if they were able to be themselves more so when other people weren't around to judge or examine them, even if there wasn't much traffic on his floor. Andrew had always been one to spy and watch the two as they communicated, and now it was much easier for them to be at ease.

At the end of their session Friday, they began to talk about the day that Serena was supposed to be planning for them. Darien was really interested in what this blonde beauty did on her days off. She was talking animatedly on the day she had planned. Darien laughed at her, as he gazed into her sparkling blue eyes.

"It seems like you're simply using me to get a day full of your favorite activities. I'm hurt that you would use me like that."

Serena looked at his eyes that were shining with humor, as he touched his chest, where his heart would be, pretending to be hurt. She laughed at him and shook her head.

"It's not my fault I'm getting a great day out of this as well. Just you wait, I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself just as I do." She said with a huge smile, her eyes had so much joy in them that he couldn't help but smile back at her. Serena grabbed her things, and walked out of his office, turning to smile at him as she shut the door.

Serena smiled to herself as she shut his office door, as soon as she turned to continue her other tasks, she ran straight into a man's chest. She looked up at the man she had bumped into, and had already started apologizing, when she realized it was Malcolm. She was so shocked to see him standing in front of her, and it was the first time she had ever been disappointed to see him.

"Mal-Malcolm what are you doing here?" she asked, barely finding her voice.

She secretly liked having her time to be around Darien and not have to think of the war of emotions going on inside her. Serena couldn't understand why she was having so many feelings! She used to be so strong, and unaffected by men. But these two, they broke down all the barriers she had successfully built against the male gender.

"I wanted to see you, since you said you couldn't do anything this weekend." He said sweetly, taking her in his arms, kissing her softly. She was so wrapped in her thoughts that she wasn't even able to kiss him back properly. He looked down at her, studying her facial expressions.

"Are you okay? You look tired, and worried. What's up?" he asked, trying to look her in her eyes, which normally gave everything away. She looked up at him, blankly. She had no idea what to think anymore, his sudden appearance had reminded him that he was in her life, and that she wasn't free to flirt and go out with Darien the way she would want to.

Serena half-smiled at Malcolm, "I'm alright, just really tired from the week." She hoped that would get her out of anything he had planned for the night.

"You look exhausted. I guess I should have called, I'm sorry baby. How about you call me tomorrow, or whenever you have time?" he asked, his eyes full of care. She nodded at him, and smiled. She leaned up and gave him a full kiss.

"I will. I'm sorry that you had to come all the way over here."

Malcolm laughed, "As long as I get to see you, I'll come."

He kissed her quickly again, smiled then winked at her as he walked to the elevator. Serena smiled back at his retreating figure. She needed to be with him, she could feel it. He was the one for her; he cared about her, and she cared about him too.

Serena put her things down and began to finish all the paper work she had left. Darien came out after a few hours and told her she was free to go for the weekend.

"Really? She asked, smiling.

"Yea, I'm not getting anything done and I figured nobody should work if the boss couldn't even focus." He said smiling, which always brought a smile to her face.

"Plus," he added, "I think you could use some extra sleep so you can properly explain to me what fun really is." He laughed.

She smiled sweetly, a little too sweetly, as she got up from her chair, leaned in and looked him in the eyes, "Be careful what you say, who knows, you may end up getting facials and a mani/pedi with me, followed by some bra shopping at Victoria's Secret." She had tried to add every girly thing she knew guys hated to do. Darien's face stopped laughing. Satisfied, she turned away from him and got her things together.

Darien leaned back towards her, using a soft, sexy voice, "Do you want to keep your job?" she whirled around to look at him, fighting her laughter. Darien smiled and pulled away from her laughing.

"Don't mess with me, blondie." He said, flashing that smile.

"No fair, that's cheating! This is not business-related! I get to take you wherever I decide." She said, standing up, challenging the man in front of her. Serena crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked him deep in the eyes, a small concentrated pout forming on her lips.

Darien couldn't help but smile at the sight of her stance. Her petite figure wasn't much to be intimidated by, but the way she crossed her arms made her breasts stick out more, and her pout made her look adorable, almost seductive. He then began to imagine what it would be like if she were to seduce him, knowing that he would give in. However, he knew that would never happen, not with Malcolm in the picture.

Darien quickly laughed so as not to drag on the silence any longer. "For one day only, I do what you want. Only one blondie, make it good. Now, get out of here, I'll see you tomorrow." He said as he turned away and headed into Andrew's office.

Andrew didn't even look up as Darien walked in and made himself comfortable in the chair in front of his desk. Andrew continued to work on whatever files he was organizing and editing for the meetings the following week. After a couple of minutes, Andrew finally looked up at Darien who sat there patiently.

"Serena really has some effect on you." He laughed, leaning back in his chair.

Darien smiled a bit, "What makes you say that?"

"Ha! The last time I didn't immediately acknowledge your presence, you stood up on my desk, demanding my attention!"

"Oh, yea!" Darien said while laughing, thinking back on the memory. Andrew shook his head, smiling nonetheless and looked at Darien with his knowing eyes.

"So, what's up?" he intrigued.

"Not sure. I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, Drew. The whole day alone with her? That means I have a million and one ways to make her mad, for her to distance herself."

Andrew laughed, "D, I don't think that girl can ever get mad at you! Plus, you two get along naturally, don't sweat it."

Andrew was right, Darien had never worried about a date before, and he shouldn't now. Well, except it wasn't really a date, more like a bet. Either way, he looked forward to their day together.

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Serena awoke in the morning excited as she got up happily and ran to shower. She took an extra amount of time so that she could shave and clean herself. She dried herself off as she ran around her room, blasting music as she always did as she picked out an outfit. After rifling through the majority of her extensive wardrobe, Serena settled on a pair of regular shorts and a tank top, ready to enjoy a warm summer's day. She ran to her bathroom, letting her hair out of the towel, blow drying and styling it perfectly so that it fell around her face. She applied her small amount of mascara and eyeliner. Serena smiled to herself as she dabbed some lip gloss on, slipped on a pair of sandals and grabbed her purse and keys then headed for the door.

As Serena drove to the coffee shop where she was supposed to be meeting Darien, she started to feel a bit nervous. She hadn't realized it, but this would be the first time she had ever seen her boss outside of the office. Serena wondered at how weird this could be for the both of them. She began to think about how different he would look when he wasn't in his traditional Armani business suit. She giggled to herself as she thought about how awkward Darien would probably look with jeans on. As she arrived at the Starbucks they were meeting at, she pulled down her mirror and touched herself up, smiled and got out of her car, locking it on the way in.

She entered the little coffee shop and looked around for Darien, but didn't find him. She walked over to the counter and ordered herself an iced caramel macchiato with whipped cream. She had been drinking that specific drink ever since she could remember. After she got her drink, she sat at a table to wait for Darien.

About three minutes later, Darien walked into Starbucks and his attention was immediately drawn to a gorgeous blonde woman, sipping an iced coffee. He hadn't been expecting her to be dressed as she was, her shorts didn't cover up much of her long lean shapely legs while her tank top clung to her body, accentuating her breasts, he smiled as she continued to sip her drink. He walked towards her until she spotted him, and she flashed him a huge smile. The sight of her becoming so excited to see him made him smile back.

"Good morning." He said simply, grinning at the woman.

"Good morning to you as well. Excited for the day?" she said, unable to hide her own excitement. Serena was staring intently at the man in front of her; she had been wrong. He did not look the least bit awkward in the light jeans he wore, and dark blue shirt that matched his eyes. His hair fell just above his eyes as it normally did, and it made him look even more handsome.

"Well of course, I mean I don't know how to have fun, remember?" he said laughing.

"True story. Well, if you want to, go ahead, and order something before we go." Darien nodded as he went to order his own iced coffee. When he returned, Serena was ready to leave.

"Let's take my car." She said simply as she motioned for him to follow her. He had no other thoughts but to follow her anywhere she asked him to. They got into her car as she drove to their first destination.

Serena didn't think it would be so easy to talk to Darien when it came to other things besides business. So as they got to the park, she had planned on visiting with Darien, she was shocked at how naturally their conversations flowed, and how much laughter they shared together, it was very different than what she had anticipated. They talked about everything, their likes and dislikes, their childhoods and their expectations for themselves in the future. They talked about their friends and families and the various tidbits in their lives. Serena and Darien stayed in the park walking around laughing and talking for three straight hours, but the time had passed like minutes. Neither of them had expected to feel so comfortable with the other, Darien especially. As they talked, Serena felt her stomach growling at her.

Darien laughed and his eyes jumped to life. "I guess it's time to eat? What do you have planned for us?"

"Come on, you'll see!" she said laughing and grabbing his hand, dragging them to her car. Darien couldn't help but treasure the time his hand was intertwined with hers; it felt so… right, as if their hands were made to accompany each other. Serena grabbed the picnic basket out of the trunk of her Volvo, and smiled as she turned to Darien.

"A picnic? Wow, I don't think I've ever even had one of those before." He said honestly. The look on Serena's face made him crack a smile.

"Never? Oh poor Darien! You really haven't lived!" she said, again dragging him back into the park. Serena knew this park well, it was where she spent her time when she wanted to think, or just to enjoy herself. It was a sort of safe haven, and had always generated good memories after she left. She led Darien to the lake that was situated in the center of the park and unfolded the picnic blanket onto the grass. She got everything ready and they both sat on the blanket eating, laughing and continuing their relaxed day.

Serena finished up her food and lay back on the blanket and shut her eyes, savoring the feeling of the sun on her skin and the company she had. Darien had proven to be less of a stiff than she had thought. She realized that he didn't have the opportunity to take the time out of his schedule to enjoy things like this.

"Why don't you ever take a break from work?" she asked, absent-mindedly, asking the question that she had been brewing in her mind. Darien stiffened; it was the first time since he could remember that he didn't want to talk about his company.

"Nothing else really seems worth it. Also, my parents expect that I can continue to bring the company up with the rest of the world's companies. It's the only thing that I have a passion for… anymore." The last word he said a bit sadly, thinking about the relationship that he used to have with Lita, even though Serena was quickly replacing her.

"It just seems so, so depressing! You stay cooped up all week in your office, and all weekend in your study at home. There's more to life than your company, no offense. Don't you want to take advantage of the time you have?" she asked, her eyes still shut. She was asking him the questions that were burning in her mind. Darien seemed to be enjoying the time they were having today, it was a wonder why he never did this on a regular basis.

"I've done everything I've ever wanted to do, the only thing left is to maintain my company." He said blatantly.

Serena rolled over onto her stomach and gazed up at him, trying hard to figure him out. He gazed back into her warm eyes and held it there. After a moment, she sighed and turned so that she could continue lying on her back.

"What else do we have planned today?" he asked curiously. The park idea had been great, he had never really bothered to explore the ins and outs of the various parks in New York. Serena had shown him various themed gardens and lakes that were in these parks that he had never realized existed. It was like a whole new world, discovering things he could only dream of.

"Anything you would like. I figured we could do something a bit more exciting now, since we'll be coming back to the park later today." She said, getting up from her horizontal position.

"Wait, we're coming back?"

"Yea, this place is beautiful at night. You'll see later!" she said, getting up and clearing away the blanket.

Once the picnic was all cleared, they headed back to Serena's car where they got in and drove to an amusement park. Darien couldn't help but laugh once he realized where they were going.

"You're not getting me on a roller coaster, I'm just telling you that now. I don't do heights."

"Oh, what's this? The billion dollar, 20th floor tycoon is afraid of heights?" Serena said mocking him.

"I'm not scared of anything. I would just prefer to be on the ground." He said simply, trying to use his board room talk to dismiss the subject. Serena laughed at him.

"Oh, yea right, scaredy cat."

"If I were you I would take that back." Darien said as they walked into the amusement park which was full of the weekend crowd. Serena turned in her tracks to look at him as she walked backwards.

"Nope, scaredy cat!" she teased, sticking her tongue out.

"Your job is officially open to others." He said, grinning at the girl in front of him. She stopped in her tracks and folded her arms in front of her body defensively.

"Take that back!" she demanded, a gesture he could only perceive as being cute.

"No." he said simply as he walked away from her. He chuckled to himself as she ran after him, yelling his name.

"Darien! Stop! That's not fair!" she argued. Darien turned around to tell her he was kidding, when she collided into him. Serena, being as small as she was, hit the hard body and was knocked backwards. Darien managed to catch her before she fell and held her close.

Serena couldn't think. Not because she had almost fallen flat on her ass just then, but because he was holding her in his strong arms. His smell was taking over her brain, and causing it to short circuit. The feel of his chest underneath her hott face got her excited in places she had forgotten about.

Darien was wondering why Serena was taking so long to recover; why he was holding her in his arms still. He didn't want to be so close, he could smell her hair and feel her warm skin on his own, it would drive him crazy later on. Holding her was an action that he had wanted to mimic so badly that now, since he had the opportunity, he didn't want to let her go.

Knowing that if he didn't let go soon, she would probably catch on to his feelings, he released her warm body. Both were upset at the detachment. Serena looked up into Darien's eyes and saw that they were calm and cool. Of course he wouldn't be flustered like her, he had others to be with.

"Are you okay, blondie?" Darien asked a grin on his face. Serena wished she could read his mind.

"Yea, let's get going! We've got to ride everything we can find!" she said, again grabbing his hand and dragging him to almost every ride in the park.

Darien couldn't remember the last time he had experienced so much joy! Serena kept him on his toes as they went from place to place being carefree. At this time, they were on their way back to the park. It was almost eleven, and this day had been amazing.

"We're back!" Serena said, as she hopped out of her car, still enthusiastic, even after the day they had just gone through. Darien got out of the passenger seat and followed the bouncing girl back into the park. They walked along different paths than earlier, and shared some of their favorite memories and stories as the moon shone above them. Serena stopped at the edge of the lake and just smiled as she walked to the edge and lay down.

"Come on and join me! The stars are gorgeous tonight." She called from the edge. Darien walked towards her and shook his head.

"No way, it's dirty down there." He said, turning his head.

Serena snorted, "You sound like a prissy little girl. Lay down here!" she commanded. He had never been spoken to like that in years, and he found it a bit refreshing as he did what he was told.

Darien examined the great black sky and watched as the stars and the moon shone above them. He couldn't believe that he had missed sights like these all his life.

"You know, you can't enjoy your successes if you don't stop and smell the roses every once in a while." Serena said softly. Darien looked over at her and half-grinned. They lay next to each other for another half hour, watching the stars sparkle. Darien couldn't believe how at ease he was, and he credited most of his serenity to Serena; she made him feel different, as if he had no cares in the world.

"Alright, it's time to go home. Field trip has ended." Serena said, breaking into Darien's peaceful thoughts.

Darien sighed and got up with her and left the park. In ten minutes, they were parked outside the Starbucks they had met at earlier that day. Both were upset that the day had ended, and wished that there was some other way to elongate the night, but fears tampered with their bravery. Darien had no idea what the proper way of saying goodbye to his employee was; should he hug her, or kiss her (which is what he truly wanted to do), or should he giver her a handshake? Or nothing at all? His brain was going to combust with all the various technicalities running around.

Serena was contemplating the same thing, as she parked in the parking lot of Starbucks. She wanted to feel his arms around her again, but she doubted something like that would happen. Serena turned to him and smiled.

"Thanks for the great day, I hope I fully educated you on some fun?"

"It was fantastic, I haven't enjoyed myself like this in years. You're right, I do need to smell the roses more often." He said, a twinkle in his eye that Serena found to be his most alluring attribute. He smiled at her, took her hand and kissed it lightly, then strode out of the car. Darien wasn't sure if he had made the right move, but as he got into his car, he closed his eyes and smiled. He could taste Serena's skin on his lips, and it was a taste he was eager to get more of. He imagined how her lips would taste, and he knew he had to get it. There was no option now, he had to have her.

Serena was speechless. The feel of his lips on her body had sent electric shocks up and down her spine, something that she had never experienced with Malcolm. As her breathing returned, she turned on the engine and drove out of the parking lot, wishing that her lips had been the victim of his kiss.

----------------------------

A/N: This chapter was a bit longer than the other ones, so hope you approve! Reviews would always help! Hope you enjoyed!


	7. Chapter 7

-------- Chapter 7

Serena was lying on Mina's bed, her eyes shut. She had just told her about the day that she had spent with Darien. It was Wednesday afternoon, and she was leaving the next morning for the Bahamas. It had been an incredibly busy few days at Shields, Inc. which is why she hadn't had time to divulge the details of her and Darien's outing. Mina was desperately trying to switch her case with one of her co-workers so that she could go as well, and it seemed to be working as she sweet talked somebody on the phone.

Serena was left to her thoughts, going from Malcolm to Darien. The biggest problem was that she had no reason at all to be thinking about Darien; he hadn't expressed any sort of desire to be with her, or made actions that he even thought of her outside of being his intern. Serena wasn't sure why she was holding out on Malcolm because of her married boss; it was in fact the same dilemma she'd been in since she had started working at Shields, Inc. Serena sighed and threw a pillow over her face, screaming into it in frustration. When she stopped screaming, she looked over at Mina giving her a stern look as she continued to hold her conversation over the phone. She shut her eyes and quietly waited for her to finish.

"Thank you Leanne, thank you! I swear I owe you so much! You've honestly made my whole life!" she said nearly jumping up and down as she hung up the phone.

"I'M GOING TO THE BAHAMAS!" she screamed at her best friend, who like her got up and celebrated, jumping up and hugging each other.

"God, I'm so glad you're coming, I can't do this without you!" Serena breathed, knowing how helpless she was in her situation.

"Sere, what are friends for? I just switched my one case for Leanne's next three cases. I know how much you need a friend with you." She said, as she quickly texted Andrew the good news. Mina had been getting sad that she would be going nearly two weeks without her best friend and her boyfriend.

"Thanks, Mina. But please, please do me a favor?" Serena asked her eyes filled with pure desperation.

"What is it?"

"Can you please be my best friend on this trip, and not Andrew's girlfriend?" she asked. She knew that Mina would understand what she meant by this statement, and Mina smiled shaking her head.

"Of course."

---------------------

Andrew and Darien were at the office putting together the last touches on the files they were going to be taking with them on their business trip. Darien had given the rest of the staff the day off so that they could prepare for the trip as well. He was a bit down that Serena's bubbly personality wasn't present; she made the office a more comfortable place. After Darien had finished his last assignment, saved it and made two backup copies, he walked out and locked his office door, then went to wait for Andrew. He entered his office and saw that he too, was done.

"Ready to go?"

"Yea, just let me get this packed. Oh, Mina's coming now." Andrew said watching Darien's face for a reaction that he knew would never reveal itself.

"I figured she would, that girl doesn't take no for an answer." Andrew laughed and agreed with him.

"So, it's going to be Mina and I, then you and Serena." He said hinting at the pairing of the two names.

"Drew, she's got Malcolm."

"So what? She thinks she's got no chance with you, which is why she's with him." Andrew said to Darien while locking his office door and heading towards the elevator.

"I know, I know."

"Who knows what will happen over this trip, maybe things will all fall together. You just need to make your move stud."

"Andrew, you're my best friend and I need you to be that, and not Mina's boyfriend on this trip. You're the only one who can talk sense into me. Please, do this for me?" Darien asked, he needed his wing man with him and he trusted Andrew more than any other person he knew. Andrew would be perfect for this job.

"Of course."

------------------

Serena was once again at Malcolm's; she was stopping by for a quick dinner before picking up Mina who was staying the night in her apartment. Malcolm smiled and kissed his girlfriend letting her in. Serena looked into his green eyes and couldn't help but smile at him. She stepped into his apartment and walked into his living room. She turned around and put her arms around his waist, pulling him closer to her. He grinned and put his arms around her as well.

"Are you going to miss me?" she asked looking up into his eyes. Malcolm smiled and kissed her, pulling her body closer to his. He continued to kiss her, gaining access to the inside of her mouth with his tongue, while Serena slipped her arms around his neck and his hands slipped under her shirt. A slight tingle went through her body as he traced circles around her lower back. He pulled away from her slowly and looked her deep in the eyes.

"You have no idea how much."

Serena smiled at him and kissed him again, as they fell onto his couch. Malcolm continued to caress her lips with his own and she responded back. Serena felt as if the more she kissed him the less she would want Darien. She couldn't help but let Malcolm work his magic on her, he was good at it, but he never went all the way. After a few minutes more, he pulled away, smiled down at her and kissed her one more time as he got up from the couch. He offered her a hand.

"Come on, you've only got half an hour before you need to be picking up Mina. Let's eat."

Serena smiled at him and took his hand and walked into his kitchen. Serena sat in Malcolm's lap through dinner his arms wrapped around her, a feeling she didn't want to forget when she was on this trip with Darien. Dinner went much longer than planned, seeing as how they had to kiss each other whenever a crumb didn't perfectly enter their mouths.

It had been an hour since they had left the couch and Serena was again, leaving Malcolm's apartment. He was kissing her in a different way than before and it was driving her crazy. She clung to his body as his hand explored her right breast underneath her shirt. She let out a small moan as he continued to caress her breast. At the sound of her moan, Malcolm pressed himself harder against Serena's body which she attempted to do as well. Malcolm's left hand had left her hair and was travelling up her body to caress her left breast as well. Another, and louder, moan escaped Serena's lips. She hadn't felt this way in such a long time, she couldn't remember the last time she had wanted a man.

However, in the middle of their heated and passionate goodbye, Serena's cell phone rang loudly and annoyingly against her leg. She groaned as she parted from Malcolm to hear the nagging voice of Mina.

"Where the hell are you? I've been waiting outside for almost an hour now!" Mina exclaimed.

"I'll be there soon, sorry." She said, her voice weak, as she hung up. She looked into Malcolm's eyes and frowned up at him.

"I have to go."

"I know," he said pulling her back to him, kissing her gently. "Have a wonderful trip, and call me when you get there. I want to know that you're safe." He said, pushing a strand of her blonde hair out of her face.

"I will." Serena said kissing him again. She pulled away and left him outside his apartment door. She turned around and blew him a kiss as she walked away. He smiled and caught the kiss, winking at her. She would miss him, she knew she would, her heart could feel it.

----------------

Mina was giggling at her best friend as they got in the elevator. They had just arrived at Serena's apartment and were trying to get all of Mina's suitcases into the apartment so that they would be ready in the morning.

"Finally, you two are getting a little juicy! I mean you two have been dating for as long as Andrew and I have!" Mina said, rolling her biggest suitcase onto Serena's floor, following after her.

"Well unlike you two, we take our time."

"Hey, I never told you what the two of us have or haven't done. I merely said that you two had been going out for just as long as we have."

Serena laughed as she lay down on the guest bed where Mina would sleep. "Really, Mina? Do you honestly expect me to believe that?"

"Okay, okay. So what if we've had sex, we're grown adults here." She said smiling. Serena knew she was gushing to tell her the details, its what girls do. She rolled her eyes at her friend.

"And…" it was all Serena had to say as Mina gushed about how much she liked Andrew and how well they got on together.

"Everything is just, so good! The sex is amazing, and the conversations and the simple things are just as awesome! Sere, I don't know when the last time I felt like this." Mina said a little fear in her eyes. She was just as unsure in her feelings as Serena, except she only had one guy associated with them, not two.

"The best thing is to just let this relationship run its course, see what happens over this trip. I am sure Andrew feels the same, I mean look at him when he's around you. He's always so happy."

"I hope so."

Serena put her arms around her twin best friend and Mina hugged her back. They giggled and gossiped together the entire night, constructing a plan for the trip and how Serena would deal with her feelings and how best to act around Darien. At about two in the morning, Serena left Mina's guest room to finish packing her suitcases and went to bed. This trip was going to make it or break it.

-------------------

The car to drive the girls to the airport came at exactly 7 a.m. and remarkably, the girls were showered, dressed, fed and organized when it came. They were both extremely tired, but much too excited to really think about sleep. Neither one of the girls had ever been on such a vacation as the one that they were about to go on. Serena knew very little about where they were staying, but she could only expect the best. They arrived at the airport in record timing and were ready before the two men had even arrived. After ten minutes of waiting (Darien had their tickets, so they didn't know which gate to wait at), Andrew and Darien arrived with a considerably less amount of luggage than the two girls.

"Are you bringing your whole closet, ladies?" Andrew joked as they pulled their own pieces of luggage out of the trunk of the car.

"You never know what you might need, it's best to stay prepared." Serena said, smiling. Darien couldn't help but admire the fact that, even so early, she was cheerful and ready to do anything.

"Right." he said, a smirk on his handsome face. Serena's heart started beating faster.

"Hey baby, I'm glad you could come." Andrew said pulling Mina into his arms, kissing her gently. She giggled and kissed him again.

"As well you should." She said grabbing her bags. "So, which gate are we?"

"Just let us handle it, you girls relax." Darien said, leading them into the airport. They walked through various hallways and security detectors, until they came to a shuttle. When they came to a stop, Serena perked up.

"Wait… we're not taking a-"

"Private jet? Yes, we are. What other way is there to fly?" Andrew said laughing at the look on his girlfriend's face.

"No. Freaking. Way." Mina said, awe on her face.

"Come on, if we board quickly we can leave a bit earlier than planned." Darien said as he and Andrew helped the girls off the shuttle. The three stewards helped them get their luggage secure in the back as the four of them got comfortable in their seats. Mina and Serena sat together and quickly got comfortable as Andrew and Darien sat facing them.

"How long is the flight?" Serena asked, curiously.

"Oh, it's only about 4 hours non-stop. We may stop in Florida, simply to refuel, but it all really depends." Darien said expertly.

"Good! It's a short ride!" Mina said happily.

After about twenty minutes, the jet was airborne. The four passengers talked and laughed the entire way to the Bahamas, it was amazing how well they got on. It seemed like they would have an amazing trip. Serena was so thankful that her bubbly Mina was there with her, she couldn't have imagined the flight without her being there to always interject with something witty or funny. The guys were always ready to slip in a sarcastic line whenever the blondes said something fitting of their hair color. All in all, it was a successful trip, and they had gone without stopping. At around noon, the pilot came on over the intercom and asked all of the passengers to remain seated and to buckle their seat belts. Within another fifteen minutes, they were happily pulling their luggage to the shuttle, soaking in the Caribbean sun.

"Where are we staying Darien?" Mina asked, her eyes shining as she looked around the airport, itching to be back outside in the sun. She and Serena had already decided that they needed to come back to the States with perfectly tanned skin, for they had both been spending too much time in the office to get out during the day.

"My place." He said simply.

"You have a place…? In the Bahamas?" Mina's jaw was to the floor.

"Yea, it's my family's, not particularly mine. Real estate is always a good investment."

"Ugh, jealous." She moaned softly. Serena giggled at her as they went through all security procedures and were led out to the Shields' driver. He happily helped them into the limo after Darien had given him a warm welcome. Excitement was now rushing over Mina and Serena, but the other two did not return their enthusiasm, they had gone this route before.

"Are you guys not even a little bit excited?" Mina exclaimed, slightly hurt that her boyfriend was not acting as joyful as she was. He smiled at her and laughed.

"We've been here plenty of times before. Plus, for us we're here for business." Andrew replied, looking sweetly into Mina's eyes.

"But you've never been here with us, and I'm telling you now, being with us makes all the difference, we change things."

"True, but still, it's the same regular old Bahamas, and that's still Darien's regular old house." Andrew said pointing out the window, as the girls squealed and turned to see the mansion that Andrew seemed to have called a "regular old house."

The building was magnificent. It was made of white bricks and could easily house ten or so people. The shutters were a dark blue, and there was a red brick pathway that led up to the front steps, that were ornately decorated. Serena couldn't believe that they would be staying in such a beautiful place.

"It's gorgeous!" she breathed, turning back to look at Darien, who was staring back at her, with an expression she couldn't very well read.

"Thanks." He said. He had just been caught admiring Serena's beauty when she had turned to him. Mina and Serena both had looks of the utmost joy dancing on their faces, almost like the glow children got on Christmas morning. She was glowing with beauty and it just rooted even deeper the feelings he had for her. The car came to a stop and the girls scrambled to get out as quickly as they could so that they could get a better view. They looked up at the house as the guys got out and began taking the stuff out of the trunk.

"You two go on and explore, we'll get the bags." Darien said, throwing the keys to Serena, giving her a wink as she caught them. His gesture surprised them both; Serena blushed as she caught the keys and ran with Mina into the house. Darien didn't know why he had done that, but it just felt like the thing to do. He was going to try and just let things happen for the time that they were together. Hopefully, something good would happen.

Serena and Mina had already gotten into the house as their mouths dropped. It was beautifully furnished, and it felt incredibly homey. They ran upstairs looking through all the bedrooms, laughing as they picked out which one they wanted. Serena walked into a room with dark colors, but somehow the darkness was welcoming to her. She lay on the bed, shut her eyes, and breathed in, and the scent that flowed into her nostrils relaxed her.

"Dibs on this room!" she shouted, sitting back up and pushing herself further back onto the bed.

"This, is my room." Darien said as he leaned against the doorframe, looking as handsome as ever, wearing that smirk that always made him look so, so… sexy. Again, Serena was blushing at his doing.

"Oh, uh, sorry, I had no idea! I guess I'll pick another one." She said as she quickly got off his bed. Darien laughed at her, he enjoyed making her blush, it was one of the sexiest things about her. The fact that she had been laying on his bed had sparked another nerve in his brain and was quickly sending signals further south. He tried to brush off those feelings, but the vision of her naked body in his bed couldn't be erased. Darien focused on the clothed girl in front of him.

"I mean, if you'd like to stay, by all means, you are most welcome."

Serena blushed even harder, "No, no thanks. But thanks for the offer." She said with a surprisingly alluring voice. And with those words she slipped right past him out the door. He laughed at her and turned to help bring her luggage into the room down the hall.

After a good half an hour when everybody seemed to be settled in and unpacked, the girls began to make lunch.

"Mina, I was under the impression that you didn't know how to cook." Andrew said watching his goddess walk across the kitchen.

"I said I didn't like cooking, not that I couldn't." she corrected him, planting a quick kiss on his lips.

"Well, Serena I didn't know you could cook either." He said again.

"I'm not like Mina, I enjoy cooking. What would you men like for lunch?" Serena asked, barely looking Darien in the eye, at which he grinned.

"Anything you ladies have in your hearts to cook. We'll eat anything." Darien said, as he finally gazed into Serena's blue eyes.

"Well how about we stick to something simple for now, how about some sandwiches?"

All four agreed and the two girls set about making sandwiches for them all. They sat at the kitchen table eating and laughing.

After lunch the girls decided that it was time that they began working on their tans. So out of respect, they asked the guys if they wanted to join as well, which they mockingly reclined.

"Guys are so ridiculous, why would they rather stay indoors and work, when they could be outside in the sun?" Mina wondered, shaking her head as she and Serena walked down to the Shields' private beach. That piece of news was also a bit shocking to them. Not to mention that if they had no desire to swim in the beach, that there was a full sized pool and built-in hot tub.

"Well to be fair, we do have a late meeting tonight. I should be in there, too." Serena said, knowing she was missing out on a great opportunity, but she had made her best friend come out here because she needed her, so she couldn't just leave her. Just by looking into Serena's eyes, Mina knew she was dying to be in the midst of their business talk she found so boring.

"Go." She said to her friend.

"What?"

"Please, you know you want to be there, so go! This is your work and I know you've got to do it, plus you'd be learning a lot. I can handle tanning on my own." She laughed.

"Thanks Mina, you're the most amazing best friend a girl could ever have!" she yelled as she ran back up to the house. She heard her friend's laughter as she ran up the steps to the house and shed her flip flops at the door. Serena knocked on Darien's study where he and Andrew were going over the set-up for the night meeting.

"Enter." Darien said, in his business voice. Serena walked in smiling at the two guys who were sitting around a computer screen and a few papers.

"I wanted to help, and learn, too." she said simply, as she pulled another chair up on the other side of Darien.

"Fair enough." He said, and then he began to explain what they had gone over and went into details about other things. Darien was finding it hard to concentrate on the task at hand when Serena was sitting next to him in tight, short shorts and a tank top over her bathing suit top, revealing her perfect round breasts. After an hour more of details and questions, they were done with their preparations.

"It's so weird, working out here." Serena said, looking around. "This just seems like it would be a place to hang out and bring a group of friends, not hold your meetings."

"Well, it's both. It changes with my mood." Darien said laughing to himself.

"True, it does change with your mood. Can we also say that as long as we're not doing anything related to Shields, Inc. we are all just friends? Not bosses and employees." Andrew said eyeing Darien and Serena.

"That sounds like a good idea. I mean it sounds awkward to say that I'm living with my bosses for two weeks." Serena said giggling. "Plus, we all seem to get along so well as friends."

"True," Darien added. "Well, let's agree that as long as we are not at a meeting, we are just friends and not bosses and employees." He repeated for emphasis.

"Agreed! Now, if you two don't mind I left Mina without any adult supervision." Serena said as she got up and quickly ran out the door. Darien couldn't help but smile as he realized that he had a chance to make his move, they were going to be friends, and what a first step it was.


	8. Chapter 8

-------------Chapter 8

A/N: Hey, sorry about the long waits, but I've been working so much to save up for school books. And I promise that this chapter is going to be much better than Chapter 7, which was pretty much just the background, which I had to add I'm sorry. But as usual, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW. It's the only way that I know you guys like what I'm doing so that I can continue it! Send me your comments and I'll try to do everything in my power to make it better for you all!

Happy reading!

--------------------

Serena had caught up with Mina on the beach and was lying on her stomach, eyes closed as she tried to get a sufficient tan. The two girls had fallen asleep for thirty minutes on each side to make sure they were evened out. After two hours of doing nothing but tanning, they rolled up their towels and headed back up to the house, curious as to what the guys were doing. As they walked into the house, they rolled their eyes as Andrew and Darien were, again, looking over more papers for their late meeting.

"Seriously, baby, you can't work the entire time we're here! Come out to the beach with us." Mina said, giving Andrew her pouty face. He grinned at her as he shook his head.

"You, girl, are going to drive me crazy."

Mina smiled at the comment, "That's what I'm here for." She said as she went into the fridge and grabbed a cold bottle of water, mimicking Serena's action.

"Come on, I mean do you guys ever actually leave this house when you come down here?" Serena asked.

"On occasion." Andrew answered honestly.

"Well, we're changing that. We've got another few hours before we have to be at the late meeting. So, you two go and get your suits on!" Serena said, Mina agreeing with her.

"And she meant bathing suits, not your Armani suits. Don't be smartasses." Mina said, looking particularly at Darien.

"Fine. We'll meet you girls down there, we just have to pick out the right suit!" he said in imitation of Serena and Mina. Andrew laughed as they went upstairs to change.

"Whatevs!" Mina called to Darien's retreating figure, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Saw that."

"Bastard."

-----------------

Mina and Serena headed back out to the beach, and lay out in the sun. It had been a couple of minutes since they had gotten back outside and Serena was thinking hard about the days to come. She was thinking of ways to continue to be in Darien's presence, in a more opportunistic way. She didn't want to make it to obvious that she wanted something else from him, but she wanted him to question it, to sort of plant the idea in his mind. Serena wasn't the type of girl that could just say how she felt about a guy; she normally waited for the guy to make their move first. But times were different, and Darien wasn't just some guy, she had to know.

As she contemplated how best to hint to him her true feelings, she felt ice cold water being dumped onto her body, which jolted her brain to the present. Mina was already up and yelling at Andrew, while Serena sprang up.

"What the hell?!" the same words escaped the girls' mouths, as Darien and Andrew stood in front of them laughing, empty water bottles in each of their hands.

"We couldn't resist." Andrew said as he laughed.

"Priceless."

"Dead. You're both dead." Serena said as she lunged at Darien, who was much quicker than she was, and darted off in the other direction. Serena chased after him down the beach as he continued to laugh at her current appearance.

"Get back here!!" she screamed at him as he continued to evade her grasp.

"Okay, okay, just promise not to kill me." He said as he laughed. As Serena stopped in front of him, she was able to admire his gorgeously sculpted body. She was surprised at how tan his body already was. His broad shoulders were smooth and perfectly rounded, toned to the perfect degree. They led to an impressively muscular chest and the most gorgeous six pack abs Serena had ever seen. His swimming trunks were sitting below his hips, which revealed the most spectacular V cut she had ever seen, which she knew led to his, probably perfect, member. She couldn't help but want to reach out and touch his hard body.

Darien noticed that Serena had stopped paying attention to his words, and was now oogling at his fit body, and he silently thanked his obsession for maintaining an athletic build. He watched her eyes as she swept over his body once, twice and three times, settling below his hips. He smirked as he saw her bite down on her lower lip, in a way that began to turn him on. Even without knowing it, the girl could make him ache for her. Since she was allowed to get an eyeful, he decided it was only fair to admire her body in return. Serena was wearing a bright pink bikini, which to Darien's joy, did not cover up too much of her body. Darien let his eyes wander down her neck and to the perfectly round, perky and fairly big pair of breasts that were only half-covered by the little triangle scraps. He continued down as her waist curved inwards, then back out to her hips and long lean legs. Darien wanted so badly to hold her body closer to him, to feel her warmth against him. He quickly snapped out of his little daydream, and turned back to her face. Her eyes were filled with something different, was it the same feeling he was feeling right now? Was she, too, wanting what she thought she couldn't, or maybe, shouldn't have?

"Well you've caught me. What are you going to do with me?" he asked, hoping she would say something that would indicate how she felt.

Serena was brought out of her daydream and looked at the man in front of her. That feeling had come up again, she _wanted_ him. She was so unfamiliar with this feeling, he drove her crazy.

"I can't tell you that, but I will tell you it'll be when you least expect it."

"Alright, blondie, we'll see what you've got." He said smirking at her.

"As for right now, it's only fair that you get in the water as well." She said, as Mina and Andrew approached them.

"Agreed!" she said, joining ranks with Serena.

"No way, it's cold." Andrew said, also joining his best friend.

"Oh, right because that water was hot." Mina said, rolling her eyes.

"We'll all get in." Serena said, smiling. She was in the Bahamas, for pete's sake! And she was going to have fun! She grabbed Mina's hand and they ran down to the water, laughing and being carefree. They stopped at the edge of the water, right before the waves crashed in. Andrew winked at Darien, and they ran after them.

Darien's arms slipped around Serena's waist, picking her up and carrying her into the water with him. She was screaming and trying to get out of his hold, but he was much too strong for her. He threw her into deeper water, and laughed as she came sputtering up out of the water for air. Mina was also coming out of the water, yelling at her boyfriend.

"Strike two! I cannot believe you two!" Serena shouted. And as she looked at Darien, she lunged at him. He wasn't expecting retaliation as forceful as this, and he toppled over, but not without bringing her down with him. The water rushed in over their bodies as Serena's landed on top of Darien's. As the water receded again, they both leaned up. Darien couldn't stop laughing at the little blonde girl on top of him. He was increasingly aware of how her breasts were pressed against his skin, and of the pressure her body made on his. He let his hands run up the sides of her body, and settled on her hips in a kind of possessive way.

"Smooth move, blondie." he said laughing, right before another wave crashed on top of them, Serena's body being forced back onto his own. He felt her hair rushing around him, then back away with the rhythm of the water. Her eyes were closed, and he couldn't help himself as he quickly brushed her lips with his. The tingle that went through his body was remarkably strong for such little contact.

As the water rushed back off their bodies, Serena lifted up off Darien's body. She placed her hands on his perfect chest and lifted her body up, inadvertently changing her position to straddling him. Serena couldn't help but look down into Darien's dark blue eyes, which were twinkling with amusement. She blushed as she got off his body, not failing to slide her hands down his chest, 'his body is perfect.' She thought to herself, as she stood up.

"Payback is sweet." Serena said, as she gave him a hand out of the position he was in. Darien stood up and couldn't help but continue to laugh at Serena as he walked towards Andrew and Mina who were fighting in deeper water.

As Darien walked away, she touched her lips. Had he really just kissed her? All she could really tell was that something had brushed against her lips, and it very well could have been anything. But it must have been his lips, what else would have made her body get so excited? It just seemed too good to be true, that he would kiss her, but what else could have been the reason? She sighed and followed him as he approached Andrew and Mina.

"Need help, Min?" Serena asked as she caught up with Darien, who was laughing at the spectacle in front of him. Mina was on her knees, and Andrew was behind her, holding his arms around her body, which stopped all her movements. She had a pout on her face and it seemed like whatever had been happening, she was so obviously losing.

"Get this kid off me!"

"But baby, I want to hold you." Andrew said laughing.

"You suck, you're supposed to always let the girl win."

"Well, then, I'll let you win later on tonight." He said, watching her expression turn to embarrassment, then anger, with her cheeks glowing red.

"Get OFF!" she said, struggling against his hold. He kissed her neck, and then let her go. Mina stood up, turned to Andrew and splashed water in his face, and with that, sparked a whole water war between the four adults. Their little game lasted for an hour, then after they just remained in the water laughing, playing jokes and relaxing.

Darien kept stealing little glances at Serena, and when he could manage it, would brush his hand against any part of her skin he could manage. The spark that tingled him was starting to become irresistible; he had to have it.

Serena, on the other hand, was getting even more confused; she didn't know why Darien was being so, _weird_ towards her. _Why was he touching her? Why would he smile at her with those eyes? Was it a mutual feeling?_ Her head was swimming, and with every touch Darien sneaked, she wanted to, for lack of a better phrase, 'jump his bones.' Serena was getting more and more at ease with him, and she wanted nothing more than to spend all her time with him.

They all got out of the water as the sun began to set, and simply lay around in the sand. Serena couldn't believe how gorgeous it was out here; it was like a vacation dream come true. Unfortunately, she knew that it wasn't all vacation; they had to be in their meeting soon.

"We have to get showered and ready for the meeting." Serena said, turning to Andrew and Darien.

"I've never been so upset to go to work." Darien admitted, and to him, that was a feat. Serena giggled.

"Well, you organized this trip to have as little work time as you could, so we'll be back out here later on." She said, getting up and gathering her things. The three others followed suit and headed back up to the house. Each of them took a quick outdoor shower to prevent the house from becoming covered in sand. They each ran to their own corners of the house and took their showers, and got ready for the meeting (except Mina of course). As they climbed down the stairs, Mina waved bye, and kissed Andrew.

"Have fun at work you guys!" she called, smirking.

"Hey, you have three cases to get started on Mins, don't try that." Andrew said, as he stole another kiss and ran out the door, shutting it behind him, before she could yell at him.

"You love taunting her, don't you?" Serena asked, laughing at him.

"She's just so cute when she gets all worked up."

Serena rolled her eyes as she sat in the backseat of Darien's black Mercedes convertible. They drove the fifteen minutes to the hotel that most of his employees were staying at, and entered into the conference room. Serena sat across from Andrew, with Darien of course at the head of the table. After all the seats had been filled, Darien started off the meeting. He went over his usual welcome and they jumped right into the presentations from four of his companies. He listened closely and Andrew took notes on the various things that needed to be done, or needed to be changed. Serena was simply listening, trying to take in as much as she could from the presidents of these companies and the assets they brought to Shields, Inc. After an intense four hours, they were all free to go. Serena smiled brightly as she got up from her seat, she was ready to be back at the house, relaxing with her best friend.

"Come on, let's go already!" she said, whining to Darien, who surprisingly found her funny, and smiled at her. Andrew watched silently as the two exchanged looks of various emotions. 'I swear, they just need one small push, and they'll be good!' he shook his head, and continued to watch their little interactions.

"Hey, I really like this chair… I think I'll stay here for a couple more minutes and just sit." He said, nonchalantly as if Serena hadn't been tugging at his sleeve.

"Get up! Get up! We have things to do!"

Darien laughed at her, "Like what?"

"I don't know, but it's better than watching you sit in a lousy chair." Serena said, reverting back to her childhood ways, pouting. The room was empty except for them three; all the others had wanted to get back to their families as soon as possible, not to mention that it was well after one o'clock in the morning.

"This is a great chair, but, you're right I want to get out of here." He said, getting up and taking her hand gently, leading her towards the door. Once she was following behind him, he reluctantly let her hand go, and continued to walk to the elevator, down to the lobby, and then out to his car. Andrew watched as how when they were in such close proximity, they seemed to gravitate towards each other. It was only a matter of time in his opinion. The drive back was filled with more of the laughter they had been sharing since they had arrived.

"Mina!" Serena called as she got into the house, shedding her heels at the door (her mother had taught her it was bad manners to walk with shoes in people's homes). Serena giggled as she found her best friend, asleep on the couch, a movie playing on the massive tv in front of her. Andrew came around, and smiled down at his gorgeous girl, looking so peaceful as she slept.

"Hard to imagine she can be so quiet." He said, grinning at Serena who laughed at him. Andrew leaned down and took her in his arms; she woke up a bit, looked into his eyes and smiled.

"Thanks, baby." She whispered as she put her arms around his neck, and nuzzled into his body. Andrew winked at Serena and went upstairs with Mina in his arms. He smirked as he realized that Serena and Darien were left alone downstairs.

Serena lay down in the spot Mina had just been in, and watched as Darien raised an eyebrow at her. She shot him a look and then turned towards the tv, as she heard him laugh. She felt the couch dip under the weight of Darien's body as he sat next to where her feet were. She sat up and looked at him.

"What?" she asked, as Darien watched her. If his gaze hadn't been so warm, she would have been creeped out by the intensity.

"Nothing. Did you learn anything at the meeting tonight?" he asked, studying her facial expressions.

"Work? I thought we weren't supposed to talk about work unless we had to, we're just friends right now, remember?"

"Sorry, it's a habit." He said honestly. She laughed at him and they began talking, as old friends would have done. For two hours straight, they just talked about everything and anything, movies, books, random facts, people, etc. It didn't matter what they talked about, they simply laughed and had a good time. As the clock neared three thirty, Serena let out a yawn.

"Mmmm, time for bed." She said, closing her eyes. Darien nodded, he was getting tired as well. He couldn't run a billion dollar company and try to get the girl he was falling for, while tired. He needed all the strength he could muster. He got up, offering Serena a hand.

"Yea, let's head on up." He said as he pulled her to her feet. They walked up the steps and down a few halls until they came to the right one. Serena walked past Darien's bedroom and headed towards her room a few doors down. As she opened her door to her room, she smiled at him.

"Good night. Thanks for bringing me here, this is amazing." She said, a genuine smile glowing on her face. He felt his heart melting and aching for her to be near him. She was too much for him, she knew everything he wanted without really knowing what to do.

"Not in comparison." He said simply, and walked into his room, shutting the door.

-----------------------

It was 10 am, and they were just starting their second and last meeting of the week, it was Friday. Weekend meetings had been abandoned a long time ago, which Darien was quite thankful about now. Serena sat on his left side, covering her mouth as another yawn overcame her body. On the inside he smiled knowing that she was so tired because she had been with him the other night. It may not have been the ideal reason why he had tired her out, but he had had a great time simply talking to her, watching her extravagant expressions and hand movements. He was learning a lot about this girl, and the more he learned, the more he wanted. He was thankful that the first days of his convention would be the longest ones, and then reduce as the weeks went on.

Darien started his meeting again and listened quite intently to the reports that he was receiving from his next four companies. He was astonished at how well the majority of his recent acquisitions had turned out; they had been gold mines for his company. As the meeting came to a close, he dismissed everybody and was in incredibly high spirits. For one, his company was flourishing still, even in the dismal economy. Secondly, he had the rest of the day, and the weekend to spend with Serena non-stop. He had nothing better to do than to go to the beach and sit on his couch and talk with her. If things kept going so well, hopefully he could steal another kiss.

"Don't start something stupid about that chair again." Serena said, her bright blue eyes happily shining into his own dark blue ones. Serena couldn't help but feel a shiver pass through her as she gazed into the eyes she was getting so used to.

"Never." He said, getting up from the chair, and heading out to the parking lot. The three of them fooled around and laughed and tried to come up with things to do during the day, it was only two in the afternoon, and there were so many things to do. Serena was craving an activity that would be adventurous, which surprised Darien and Andrew. The petite girl didn't look as if she would want to do something crazy. But she settled on something much more calm.

"I think we should go snorkeling, or diving, or something along those lines." Serena suggested to the two, who were very enthusiastic about her idea. They arrived at the house and Darien asked their day butler if he could make reservations for the four of them to go snorkeling. Mina came in and immediately went straight for Andrew, and began kissing him.

"Ugh, get a room you two." Serena said, sitting on one of the bar stools in the kitchen. Mina turned and stuck her tongue out at her.

"We have a room, thank you very much." She said, taking Andrew's hand and walking into the kitchen. Serena rolled her eyes.

"Sheesh, don't even act like you and Malcolm don't kiss." She said, nonchalantly throwing Serena's boyfriend's name out into the open. Serena went scarlet as she tried to say something, but came up with nothing witty. Darien had stiffened at the sound of his name, and he came crashing down to Earth, where Serena had a _boyfriend_.

"Shut up, Mina." She said quietly, and turned away from her. The room had gone weirdly silent, and stiff. Serena was looking down at her hands, and Darien was staring off into space, not thinking or caring about anything. He hated Mina right now; she couldn't have saved her smart remarks for some other time? He had been in a great mood, and had been excited to go snorkeling with Serena. It would have given them more time to talk and enjoy each other. Not to mention she would be almost naked as they did that.

Mina had suddenly become very aware of what she had just said. Serena and Darien were now looking off in various directions, probably trying to disappear to some secluded place. She was mentally kicking herself for uttering _his_ name, as if it had been some curse. She was nervously playing with her fingers that were entwined with Andrew's, who was also deep in thought. His girlfriend could be quite forgetful at times. He pulled her close to him and kissed her forehead, and she put her arms around his waist.

As the silence continued to grow, David, the day butler, walked into the kitchen.

"Sir, you have a reservation at 3:15, and it is a twenty minute drive, so my advice is to get dressed quickly and head out." He said, eyeing the intense group, whom he had just left in good spirits.

David's words brought them all out of their trances.

"Thanks David, you can have the rest of the day off, and the weekend too." Darien said, walking away from the group.

They all jumped up and went straight to their bedrooms. Darien was angry, yes, definitely. Who would have ever thought that a single name could put him in such a horrible mood? As he walked into his room, he caught a glimpse of Serena walking quietly down the hall, her head down. 'What is she so upset for? She has a _boyfriend_ at home.' He thought as he slammed the door shut behind him, wishing that his emotions could have been left behind as well. He sat on his bed and gave the floor such a terrifying scowl, that it was remarkable that the patterns didn't leap off and hide. He slowly calmed himself down as he changed into his swimming trunks. He shook his head, and paced his room, thinking and thinking about what he was going to do.

Darien was lost in his thoughts, when he suddenly came to a stop. 'No,' he told himself, 'when have I ever been intimidated by anybody? Now is not the time. I can win her over, she will learn to like me instead. I'm a great catch, better than _him_.' He thought, pulling himself together (a/n: I swear, men and their egos). Darien was going to enjoy himself, and he was going to make sure Serena didn't think of Malcolm at all this trip.

----------------

Serena watched as Darien slammed the door, hard, behind him. For some reason, it was killing her that he had taken a sharp turn in mood, as if he were upset. Was he just as upset about hearing Malcolm's name as she had been? No way. She walked into her room and shut the door and rifled through her bathing suits, picking a sky blue one, that matched her eyes. She got dressed and was putting her shorts on when a light knock came to her door. Was it Darien? What did he want?

"Who is it?" she called out, ready to send them away.

"It's me!" whispered Mina through the crack of the door. Serena rushed to the door and yanked it open.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" she almost screamed at her best friend. Mina blushed, as she began to apologize.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! It was just a reaction!" she said quickly.

"Well now you've ruined everything! Why would you mention him, when Darien and I were getting along so well?!"

"Shhh! Let's get inside your room, crazy lady." Mina said, entering the room and shutting the door behind her.

"Listen, I'm really sorry. But on the bright side, we know Darien wants you!" Mina said happily.

"What? No we don't."

"Wow, did you not notice how he went stone stiff right when I mentioned Malcolm? I mean come on, don't be thick!" Mina said to her. The words Mina was saying were rushing to her brain, making her think of the past few weeks with Darien, and how happy he had been… how happy he had made her.

"I think he kissed me yesterday." She said, more to herself than to Mina. Saying it out loud made it a real concept, not a figment of her imagination. Serena looked into Mina's brown eyes, and saw shock shining in her eyes.

"WHAT?!" she yelled, looking at Serena as if she had three heads. "And you couldn't mention this sooner??"

"Calm down, listen to what happened." And Serena recapped the incident under the water and the way she had felt the tingle go down her spine. Mina was smiling wider than Serena was when she finished telling the story.

"You've got to make a move. Sere, you need to do something!" Mina said, excited at the new piece of gossip.

"No! I can't!"

"He _**kissed**_ you! Make a move, and soon!"

"So? What if I'm wrong and I make a move? That would be the most humiliating thing ever! We have to be in this house living together for the next two weeks! Not to mention I work for him!" Serena said, throwing a tank top over her head, and slipping flip flops on.

"Ugh! Just do it! You know you want to, and I know he won't reject you. He's into you, I know it. Now, I'm going to go make sure Andrew is ready. I'll see you outside, and you better be in a good mood!" Mina said as she walked out of the room.

Serena fell onto her bed, and buried her face in her pillow and screamed. Why was this so frustrating? She suddenly wished for her old kindergarten days when she could simply write Darien a note inquiring whether he liked her or not, and he could check yes, no or maybe. Growing up was just not as much fun as she had hoped.

Darien had just run back into his room as Mina came out of Serena's. He leaned against the door and smiled, she wanted to make a move on him! 'Forget Malcolm, he never had a chance against me,' he thought, smirking (again, those egos! Idk how they live with them). As he was about to move away from the door, a light tap came to his door, he froze. Was Serena going to make a move on him now? It would be interesting to see what she was going to try. He smirked at the dream version of Serena he had, stuttering over her words trying to be something she wasn't. He shook his thoughts out of his head, and opened the door and looked at the blonde in front of him.

"I know you heard us, and you, mister 'big boss,' need to make a move soon, or else you'll lose your chance and her for good."

And with that, Mina flung her blonde hair over her shoulder, and walked away to find Andrew. Darien stood in his door frame, mouth open. He made up his mind, he had gotten the 'go-ahead' from the best friend. He had waited long enough, and he needed her, wanted her, tonight.

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So what do you think of how the Bahamas is turning out?! Leave me your comments and I'd truly appreciate it!

Til next time!


	9. Chapter 9

--------------Chapter 9

A/N: Hey guys! This chapter wrote itself a bit quicker than usual. Thanks for all the reviews! I appreciate them all and keep them coming! I love hearing what you have to say and what you liked/ disliked.

Enjoy!!

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Mina was on her way back to Andrew's room, where she walked in. He looked up, slightly startled and smiled at her, pulling her into his arms. Holding her close to him was one thing that he couldn't get enough of.

"Come back for a replay of last night?" he said, grinning as he looked down at her. She rolled her eyes and giggled at him. She leaned up and kissed him, holding on a little longer so that she could really taste his lips before pulling away from him.

"Not now, but definitely later." She said, a mischievous grin on her face. She walked away from him and lay on his bed, shaking her head.

"What's up?"

"Your best friend and my best friend are absolutely perfect for each other, and neither of them have the balls to make a move!"

Andrew laughed, as he lay in front of her, playing with her blonde hair. "Darien over-thinks these kinds of things. He cares about her more than he even realizes, but he's stubborn and I don't think he'll listen to any of us."

"Well he better, because I just finished talking to him. Well, I talked, he just stood there. But I'm pretty sure he got the message." She said thinking back to the goofy grin Darien had had on his face when she had spoken to him.

"Let's hope he does. Oh, and can we please make things easier for him by not mentioning Serena's boyfriend?"

"Ugh, I'm _sorry!_ I totally didn't mean to, it sort of just slipped." She said, burying her face in his neck.

"Do you forgive me?" she asked, planting one kiss at the base of his throat. He smiled.

"Maybe."

Mina planted more kisses along his neck, rolling on top of him.

"How about now?" she whispered. Andrew shuddered as he grabbed her waist and pulled her onto him.

"I won't forgive you if you give me blue balls." He said, quite honestly. Mina giggled and got off of him.

"I didn't say stop." He groaned, as he let himself be helped onto his feet so they could leave. Mina grinned and pulled him through the door. They waited at the end of Serena and Darien's hallway so that they could leave.

Serena emerged from her room first, in a much better mood than she had been a couple of minutes ago. The blue in her eyes was shining and she couldn't have looked any more gorgeous. As she joined Mina and Andrew, she called out for Darien.

"Darien! Come on slow poke, we're waiting! Let's go snorkeling!" she said as Darien came out of his room, also smiling.

"Alright, alright, alright! Let's go." He said, catching up with them.

They left the house and drove down to the building where they would meet their instructor and guide. The four were in such good moods, that it was hard to think that they had just been silently feuding. The instructor taught them the basics about snorkeling, then they were let out to meet their guide. They got their equipment and went and enjoyed themselves in the water, watching all kinds of different fish and aquatic wildlife. They stayed out there for two hours just swimming and watching the beauty.

-----------

The four were lying on the beach, talking and tanning at the same time (Mina's idea). They were relaxing after spending such a long time swimming. Darien had been admiring Serena since they had gotten out of the house. Her blue bikini couldn't have made her look anymore sexy. The way it brought out her eyes made him even more positive that he had to do something in the near future, or risk losing her. The day went by exceptionally fast, with nothing truly exciting, or further devastating, happening. It felt so peaceful being out on their own part of the beach, with company that made them all happy and excited about various things.

At seven thirty, the group got up to get dinner started. Since Darien had released David for the weekend, they were going to all cook together. It seemed as if Serena and Mina would be the ones doing all the cooking, but the two guys had a bunch of tricks up their sleeves. They each showered then came back downstairs, ready to begin. Serena, of course, was the last one down.

"Took you long enough!" Andrew said as he held Mina in his arms.

"I can't help it! I love showers, they're just so relaxing." She said as she closed her eyes and smiled. Darien couldn't pull his gaze away from her, as she walked up to him. She smiled at him, and took his hand.

"Let's get to cooking!" she said, happily dragging Darien behind her. As they all reached the kitchen, they stood around; nobody could decide what to make. Each of them was arguing about what dish to make and how to prepare it. With all four of them running around the kitchen, it took them twice as long to have their meal cooked and ready to eat. After they had eaten their fill, they cleaned up the kitchen and went into the huge t.v. room. Serena lay down on one of the biggest couches and curled up. Darien sat at the end of the couch by her feet and smiled at her.

"What?" she asked; he was looking at her in that _way_, the one that made her insides churn and get all nervous.

"You're just so… lame." He laughed. Serena sat up and gave him an angry look, crossing her arms over her chest and sitting Indian style, staring at him.

"Am not!"

"It's what? 9:30? And you're already curled up getting ready for bed. That's what I would call lame." He replied, nonchalantly leaning back against the couch, turning the t.v. on and ignoring Serena's angry looks.

"Well, I don't see you doing anything better!"

"I'm not the one who claims to know 'how to have fun,' remember?"

Mina laughed from the other side of the room, but was silenced as Serena glared at her as well. She shook her head at the two of them.

"Then why don't we go out?" Mina suggested. Serena immediately perked up, while both Andrew and Darien looked unenthused.

"No." they both said.

"Oh, come on! It'll be fun!" Serena whined to Darien, who was very intent on sitting on the couch watching t.v.

"Nope." He said, simply. Meanwhile, Mina was putting the moves on Andrew, trying to coax him into going out. She was seductively whispering in his ear, as he shuddered. It was working, whatever she was saying was getting to him.

"Alright, I'll go." He said, pulling Mina closer to him. It was truly unfair the hold she had on him, but he was slowly getting used to it.

"Drew!" Darien yelled, looking over at him. His friend was supposed to be on his side! Darien had no intention of going out to a sweaty club, and having various girls attack him. He wasn't too fond of the idea.

"Yes! Now you have to go! You don't want to be the only one staying!" Serena said, a smile on her face that meant she knew she was getting what she wanted. Darien groaned in frustration, it was not looking good for him.

"Fine, but I get to decide when to leave." Darien said, looking into Serena's excited blue eyes.

"Deal!" she said, jumping out of her seat. "Let's get ready!" she said, grabbing Mina's hand. Mina wasn't expecting to be pulled out of Andrew's arms, but quickly kissed him before being dragged up the stairs. The two girls ran up the stairs giggling, excited about the night that lay ahead of them.

On the other side, Darien and Andrew remained in their seats. Darien sighed and ran a hand over his face. This was not going to be a good night.

"Those girls are going to kill us." Andrew said, laughing to himself as he got up from his chair. Darien stood up, and walked behind him.

"This is going to be a disaster."

"Nah, you never know. It might be a good thing, maybe a bit of alcohol will loosen you up. You need to stop being a pessimist all the time D." Andrew said, as he entered his room. Darien thought about it and he was right, being pessimistic wasn't the best idea at this point. He walked into his room and started looking for something to wear.

The two girls were getting ready together in Mina's room; they usually mismatched each other's clothes anyway, so it made no difference to them. They were both applying make-up at the large vanity mirror, and were quickly gossiping about the night that could happen. Mina was convinced that something would happen when they got to the club, wherever it was.

"Nothing is going to happen! Did you see his face? He hates the idea of going out to a club!" Serena said, as she applied her mascara.

"So that's why you need to make it a good experience! Take advantage of this, please!" Mina begged her friend. "God, things would be so much better if you two would just get together!"

Serena giggled at her friend and rolled her eyes. They both continued getting ready, all dolled up. It was times like these when she appreciated Mina, and the way that it felt to get really made up and be flirtatious. Serena was wearing a cute pink dress that was too short to wear during the day, but perfect to go out in. Mina was wearing an orange dress that brought out the tan that she had just gotten. Serena had thrown her hair half up, with various pieces of hair curled around her face while Mina had straightened her long blonde hair, preferring to let it hang past the middle of her back.

Mina ran down the hall and knocked on both Darien and Andrew's doors, giving them a five minute warning before they had to be downstairs and ready. Mina giggled as she walked back into her room, sitting back down at the mirror.

"Alright, it's time to go. Touch up and let's go!" she said, excited. They both touched up their lip gloss and walked out of the room happy and excited. The guys were sitting downstairs, looking incredibly bored with their predicament.

"Come on! Let's go!" Serena said, reaching the bottom of the steps and looking at the guys. Darien looked up and couldn't help but smile at the petite goddess that had just walked down the steps. The dress she wore clung to her body which emphasized the way her hips moved as she walked. Darien and Andrew stood up and were both mesmerized by the two gorgeous ladies.

"Baby, you look gorgeous." Andrew said, as he pulled Mina towards him. She smiled, and quickly pecked him.

"Lip gloss, don't mess with it." She said, laughing at Andrew's expression.

"Serena, you look amazing as well." Darien said smiling at her, as her cheeks turned a delicate shade of pink.

"Thanks." She said, smiling at him. She turned to Mina and Andrew and motioned for them to get going.

"Let's go!" Mina said, grabbing Andrew's arm and running towards the door. The four of them left and got into the car. After a little bit, they got to the club. Serena and Mina got out of the car excited and happy to be inches away from a great night. Each of them grabbed a hand and pulled the man behind them towards the entrance.

After waiting in the line for a good half an hour, they were in the club. Both blondes were at the bar getting drinks for themselves. Andrew and Darien watched as the two girls were able to weasel a guy into buying them drinks. The two girls flipped their hair and flashed smiles at the guy as they turned around and headed back towards them, giggling. They seemed to be doing a lot of that tonight.

"Are you guys not going to have drinks?" Serena asked as she sipped the last of her second one. Mina had also finished her second drink. Andrew and Darien had yet to have anything. Darien was not a huge fan of alcohol, but the way Serena's cheeks were turning pink, made him feel a bit better.

"I'm fine." He said, smiling at her. Mina suddenly jumped out of her seat with a huge smile on her face.

"Let's go dance!" she said, grabbing Andrew's arm and pulling him out of his seat.

"No, no, no. Baby, no." Andrew said as he pulled her back towards him, and sitting back in his seat. She pouted at him as she moved her body between his legs and pressed her body against him.

"Please, please, please?" she whined, whispering into his ear. Andrew never really had a chance against her, she had learned all his spots.

"Fine." He said, letting her drag him to the dance floor. Serena turned towards Darien, and smiled.

"No! I don't dance." He said, already picking up on the question that was forming in her mind. Serena pouted at him.

"Please!? You're not going to let me sit here drinking all night, are you?" she asked, looking into his dark blue eyes. She couldn't stop staring into them; they were making her feel so warm, and comfortable.

"No way, not happening." He said, pulling away from her gaze before she could drag him out to the dance floor, where more sweaty people could rub up against him. He turned to quickly look at Serena who was still pouting. He shook his head at her one more time and she sighed, finally giving up on him.

"Ugh, fine! I guess I'll just have to ask some other guy to dance with me." She said as she got up from her seat and headed towards the bar.

Darien could have kicked himself, he hadn't thought that far. He watched as Serena managed to have a guy on the dance floor within three minutes. He followed her with his eyes to the dance floor where she began to move her body in the most sexual way, swinging her hips back and forth, enchanting him.

Serena could tell he was watching her, so she wanted to make sure he regretted not agreeing to dance with her. The guy whom she was dancing with put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him. She felt grossed out as he started sliding his hands up and down her waist. She gave a quick glance at the bar where Darien sat. He was staring directly at her and her dance partner, with an uninviting scowl on his face. Even with the angry expression he wore, girls around him were trying hard to get his attention. Serena turned back to the guy she was dancing with and gave a seductive sway of her hips, making sure that Darien's attention remained focused on her, not the other girls sitting around him.

Darien couldn't help but feel the anger flow through his veins as the guy continued to press his body against Serena's. The only thing he wanted to do was go over and rip his hands off his body, that way he could never touch Serena again. He was so consumed by his anger that he didn't even notice the girl trying to talk to him on his other side; he only had eyes for Serena. His anger surged as the guy she danced with began to slide his hands up and down her body; it was certain, the hands had to come _off_. A friendly pat on the back brought his attention back to the bar.

"You should have just danced with her." Andrew said as he sat down next to him, pulling a giggling Mina into his lap.

"She can do what she wants." He said simply. Mina scoffed and rolled her eyes at Darien's stupidity.

"And she wants _you_." Mina said, forcing her brown eyes to look directly into Darien's. As soon as he was about to reply, Serena came bouncing over to them.

"I love this place! It's so much fun!" she said, breathless.

"Where's your little friend?" Darien asked, looking at her. She turned bright pink, but managed to compose herself fairly quickly.

"You didn't want to dance, so I had no other choice." She said, looking at him directly in his dark blue eyes.

"Fine, I'll dance with you." He said, in a grumpy tone. She laughed triumphantly, and pulled his arm towards her and towards the dance floor. Mina and Andrew came following after them, as they entered the group of people who were throwing their bodies against their partner's.

Serena pulled Darien towards her and pressed her body against his and started moving in rhythm to the music. She closed her eyes as she felt his hands run down her body, gripping at her waist, pulling her closer to his own hard body. The power behind his hands was something she had never experienced before as she felt excitement erupt in her veins. Darien moved his body with hers as he took control of the way their bodies were moving. Serena couldn't help but let her mind wander to the unforbidden things that she wanted so badly from this powerful man. She couldn't help but want to know how he would treat her if he took her to bed. Serena bit down on her bottom lip as she imagined how amazing he would feel.

Darien had never liked dancing, but this he would gladly do anytime. The way Serena's body was moving and pressing against his was so sexy. He took advantage of his opportunity to feel his way down her body. She pulled onto him tighter as he grabbed her waist. His thoughts were going in every direction, but they all focused on Serena's body remaining underneath his. Darien was looking down at Serena's face as she bit down on her lip. He couldn't help but want to taste the lips that she was biting on. Serena looked up into his eyes and held his gaze. Darien couldn't help it, he moved closer towards those pink lips of hers. It was like he was magnetized towards them, he needed to have them.

Serena was leaning up towards him as well, she wanted him, and finally she was going to get it. She put her arms around his neck and pressed her body closer to his, wanting to feel every part of him. As soon as they were about to finally touch lips, somebody bumped into Darien, throwing him off his balance.

Serena slipped, and before she even had a chance to hit the floor, Darien had caught her. Amidst all the commotion, he steadied her and turned towards the man who had bumped into him. There in front of him stood the guy Serena had been dancing with earlier in the night.

"What the hell are you doing?" he growled at the man, who happened to be half a foot shorter than Darien was.

"I think she wanted to dance with me." The brown haired man said. Darien laughed in his face.

"Did she say that?"

"No, but I'm sure if we ask her, she'd rather be with a real man." He said, smirking up at Darien. The anger in his eyes flashed dangerously at him, nobody could question the fact that Darien was a real man.

"Excuse me?" Darien asked in a viciously low tone. Serena saw the way his eyes were turning to an even darker shade of blue. She had to intervene before these two men got into it. She stepped in front of Darien.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to stay with him." Serena said putting her arms around Darien's waist. He looked down at the blonde who was pressing her head against his chest. He put his arm around her, and smiled.

"Hey, sweetheart when you realize you need a real guy to take care of you, come find me." The man said, walking away from them, with his smirk still plastered on his face. The nerve of some men really never made sense to Serena, but then again, men were impossible.

Darien pulled Serena closer to him. "Let's get out of here, okay?"

Serena smiled up at him and nodded. Andrew and Mina had already joined the two; Andrew had come to back Darien up in case a fight had started, he knew Darien had a very quick temper. He and Mina smiled as they watched their best friends walk arm in arm out of the club.

----------

The four of them walked into the house, still in good spirits, even after the incident. Serena and Mina were exhausted from the night, and were heading to bed.

"Well, we might as well all get to bed, and get up early tomorrow? That way we can have more adventures?" Darien suggested to Serena, as she smiled.

"Yes!" she said, excited. He rolled his eyes, and began to walk up the stairs after her. They climbed the steps and went down the hallways to their rooms. Serena walked past Darien's door and on towards hers. Darien reached his room, and turned to Serena who had just gotten to hers.

"Hey, Serena?" he said, as he walked towards her. He was determined to get what he wanted. She turned to him and smiled.

"Yea?"

"Thanks, for dragging me out tonight." He said, stopping in front of her. She smiled and looked into his eyes as he closed the distance between their lips.

He stopped his advance an inch from her lips, as he looked down at them. He smiled as she did her nervous habit of biting on her bottom lip.

"Do you want me to kiss you?" Darien whispered, his voice low and seductive. Serena closed her eyes and felt his warm breath brush against her lips. She wanted nothing more than to feel his lips against hers. His scent was flowing into her nostrils and was taking over her entire body. She couldn't even speak. She quickly nodded her head.

Darien brushed the hair out of her face, touching her soft skin and smiled down at her. He finally placed his lips over hers, as the tingle went through both of their bodies. Darien's lips began working magic over Serena's; the way his lips parted hers so he could taste her was working Serena into a frenzy. She had never been kissed like this, he was so gentle, yet she could feel the power behind his kisses. Serena slid her hands around Darien's neck, pulling her body closer to his while losing her fingers in his hair. He smiled into the kiss as he put his hands around her waist and held her tight.

Darien couldn't believe that he had gone this long without kissing Serena. She was so perfect in his arms, and she tasted so sweet. He didn't want to let her go, not now or ever. She was doing things that no other girl had done to him while kissing; the way she grabbed and played with his hair at the base of his neck had shudders going down his spine. Her aroma was swallowing him whole and if he didn't know any better, he was turning to putty in her small, delicate hands. At this point, he was beginning to lose himself. His body wanted to continue on this track, to continue kissing her, holding her, just to see what it would lead to. But he knew that he couldn't let it go that far, he wanted to do this right, he wanted to do _her_ right. She deserved the best.

Serena was lost in the kiss, and couldn't wait to see where it would lead them. Her previous thoughts about being taken to bed by Darien were getting stronger and stronger. Serena wasn't usually so keen to have sex, but she knew with him it would be something entirely different. Serena was getting breathless, and she had no intention of pulling away to breathe, this was much better than oxygen. As much as she didn't want to pull away, Darien began to. She whimpered a bit as she followed his lips, but unfortunately couldn't hold on since he was so much taller than her.

As they pulled away, Serena blushed and Darien laughed lightly at her. He brushed the hairs out of her face, and smiled at her. He had never seen Serena's eyes as bright as they were now as she smiled back.

"Time for bed." He said as he looked back at her, a grin on his face. "I'll see you in the morning."

"You bet your ass you will." Serena said, turning on the spot and entering her room. Darien smiled at her closed door, and went to his own room. This girl was going to keep him on his toes, that much was for sure. He walked into his room and got undressed, then pulled his pajama pants on. As he was getting into bed, he heard a light tap on his door, which Darien knew could only be from one person. He smiled as he got out of bed, and opened his door. Darien was about to say something, when Serena threw her body into his arms and on tip toe, kissed him. He slipped his arms back around her waist, which was covered by a simple pink nightgown, and pulled her to him. After a few seconds of kissing, Serena pulled away from him and smiled, half due to the kiss, the other half because of his shirtless chest. She looked up into his eyes, and waved a finger at him, as if he had been a naughty boy (which his thoughts were).

"You didn't kiss me goodnight." She said, matter-of-factly.

"Well, forgive me?" he said, laughing.

She smiled again, shrugged her shoulders and simply said, "Maybe."

She turned away from him and walked out of his room closing the door. He laughed to himself and got into bed. His last thoughts were of the beautiful blonde he had finally gotten. It was everything he had thought of and more, and he didn't think he could ever get enough of it. Darien was hooked on the vivacious girl that had kissed him in a way that made him happy.


	10. Chapter 10

-------------Chapter 10

Serena woke up early the next morning, simply happy. She had gone to sleep smiling, and her mood had only intensified overnight. Unable to stay stationary in her bedroom, she got up and put her sweatpants and a tank top on. She quickly did her morning routine, washing her face and brushing her teeth before heading down the hallway. She stopped at Darien's door and knocked lightly, her heart had paused. No answer. She knocked again, but still no answer. Serena sat outside his door for a few more seconds before she quietly opened it. She smiled at the man who was lying in the huge bed. Darien was sleeping shirtless on his stomach. He was so peaceful, none of the indifference that was usually etched on his features, just pure relaxation. Serena smiled and left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

She continued down the stairs after checking in on Andrew and Mina who had fallen asleep in each other's arms, something Serena was jealous of. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept in the comfort of somebody's arms that cared about her. Her mind wandered through various thoughts as she set about the kitchen cooking breakfast. After about an hour and a half, she had successfully made an array of breakfast foods including bacon, pancakes, eggs and various fruit. She washed her hands in the sink and dried them off before heading upstairs to wake up the others.

Serena reached Andrew's room and knocked before walking in. She leaned against the door frame as she called them up.

"Mina… Andrew, time to wake up." She said softly. Mina stirred in his arms and looked up at Serena.

"Morning." She said simply, before laying her head back down onto Andrew's bare chest. Serena laughed at her; she was usually an unpleasant person to wake up.

"Breakfast is ready." She told her, and Mina's face lit up.

"Great!... Andrew, wake up! Breakfast time!" she said, getting out of bed. Serena gracefully exited the room before she witnessed anything she wouldn't want to see. She walked down the hallways and knocked on the next room. Still no answer. Serena walked into the room and found Darien in the same position she had left him in earlier.

"Darien? Darien? It's time to wake up, breakfast is ready." She said, unsure of what to do. She was positive that he would be like any other morning grump. Darien stirred a bit, and mumbled something before becoming motionless again.

"Darien, come on, time to get up. It's 11 o'clock already."

"No." he said, quite clearly. Serena laughed at him.

"Really, Darien? It's time to get up!"

Darien opened his eyes and looked at her. He groaned in frustration.

"You're a _morning_ person, aren't you?" he complained. That might not work towards her advantage he thought.

"Kind of… on occasion, I guess. Now get up, your food is getting cold!" And with that she left Darien alone in the dark. He groaned and let his body slump back into the comfortable mattress. He drifted back and forth between dream world and reality. Finally, after twenty minutes he got up form his bed and went into his bathroom.

Serena, Andrew and Mina were all sitting on the kitchen stools enjoying their breakfast, when Darien walked down the steps, looking a bit disgruntled. He sat in a stool and began to grab some food.

"Good morning." He said, giving them a grin. Andrew laughed at his friend.

"I forgot how much you hated getting up before noon."

"Hate it." He said smirking at Serena, who stuck her tongue out at him. He was so annoying. She knew he wasn't that upset, he had been the one to suggest getting up early the next morning so that they could have more adventures.

"Suck it up, now eat."

"Yes ma'am." He grinned at Serena, and she rolled her eyes at him. Mina was looking at Serena with knowing eyes; something had changed between the two of them. She patiently waited for the four of them to finish eating their breakfast before asking her to join her upstairs to 'grab something'.

As soon as Serena had stepped over the threshold into Mina's room, Mina started giggling and beaming down at Serena, who stood there completely confused. She shut the door behind her and rolled her eyes at Mina.

"What is all this about?" she asked innocently… she couldn't be _that_ easy to read. Serena didn't think it was possible for anybody to tell that she and Darien had shared a special moment together. Mina wasn't that good… apparently she was.

"I know something happened between you two! It's so obvious! The way he looked at you all during breakfast, how you kept smiling at him! Not to mention that he couldn't stop touching you!" Mina went on, describing the many reasons she knew something had developed between the two. Serena sat on the bed and giggled as she too thought about the little smiles they had shared between them; thinking that they were the only ones who had noticed. It was also true that Darien was always touching her. Every time he walked past her, he would run his fingertips against her skin, or he would brush her hands with his.

Serena had liked the idea of secret flirting, it was fun! But Mina had ruined it before it even had a chance to build up. It's not like she wouldn't have told Mina, she had just wanted to figure things out a bit more, or let them continue to flirt in their own way. Mina broke into Serena's thoughts.

"Tell me what happened!" she demanded, not really giving Serena a chance to say no. Serena laughed at her, and told her how Darien had kissed her. She couldn't help but give Mina the details; how he had held her, the way his body felt against hers, the taste of his lips. It was obvious to Mina that Serena was happy, the most genuine kind. She smiled at her best friend and nodded, she knew the feeling of being swept off her feet, Andrew did that to her on a regular basis.

"This is so perfect! This trip will be so much easier now." Mina said, hugging Serena and laughing.

"You can't tell Andrew! I don't want this to be a big deal."

"Are you serious? You really think Darien isn't going to tell him? I'm positive that they're talking about it right now!" Mina said.

"Well, if he hasn't then don't tell him!" Serena said as she walked to the door and pulled Mina after her. Mina merely laughed and walked out the door after her.

They climbed down the stairs and walked into the t.v. room where Darien and Andrew were relaxing.

"So, what are we doing today?" Mina asked. "I want to do something fun!"

"And what did you have in mind?" Darien asked her.

"Let's go exploring! I bet there's so much to see here!"

"Yea, I've heard there are a bunch of tours you can take. Let's work on it." Andrew said, looking at Darien, who silently agreed.

"Grab us the laptop in the office, and we'll look it all up."

Serena went and grabbed the laptop and brought it back out into the t.v. room. The four of them sat around it looking up different parks and tours to go on, until they had narrowed it down to three. They were going to do the remaining ones later the next day, and during the week. They all went upstairs to change into their day clothes, excited about their trip. Serena was busy in her room, putting on her shorts over her bathing suit when a light tap came to her door.

"Come in." she said, her back to the door. As she finished buttoning up her shorts, she turned around and came face to face with a handsome dark haired man. She smiled as Darien put his arms around her waist and pulled her to him.

"Good morning." He said, planting a gentle kiss on her lips. She laughed at him.

"Good morning? It's almost 2 in the afternoon." She said, looking at her watch.

"I'm simply demonstrating the _correct_ way to wake somebody up." Serena laughed and rolled her eyes.

"You get what you get." She said pulling away from him and walking around her bed, getting her stuff put together. Darien chuckled and sat down on the edge of her bed, and watched as she looked for a shirt to put on over her bikini top. Serena was looking for a tank top and was conscious of the fact that Darien was watching her. It almost made her uncomfortable, but he did it in a relaxed, "I'm-not-creeping-on-you" kind of way. She slipped a green tank top on, and turned to him. He was sitting there, just waiting. It was odd how comfortable she was in his presence, and that Darien had even come up to her and kissed her. Their relationship was truly something different than what she was used to. Darien's voice brought her out of her thoughts.

"Come here."

Serena couldn't help but approach him. As she stood in front of him, Darien put his hands on the backs of her legs and pulled her closer to him still as she put her arms around his neck. She looked down into his eyes and smiled as she bent down and kissed him. Darien pressed his lips onto hers and instantly felt the attraction. He put his hands behind her knees, and moved each of them, one at a time, to either side of his body, so that she was sitting on him.

The added pressure of her body being placed on his spiked the excitement in his kissing patterns, pressing his mouth to hers more urgently than before. Serena pressed herself onto him even more and kissed him harder, moving her hands through his hair. Darien was lost in Serena's scent, and pulled her body closer to his. As he parted her lips again, he slipped his tongue into her mouth, fully tasting her. Serena couldn't help herself as she returned the favor, brushing her tongue against his, creating even more sparks. Darien was going crazy on the inside; he wanted Serena so badly, more than anybody he'd ever laid eyes on. The feel of her tongue on his made his mind do flips; he had never been so excited, so eager to keep tasting somebody. He put one of his arms around her waist, and leaned back onto the other one, holding both of their bodies slightly higher than the bed. The incline made Serena's body cover his even more, and he knew he had to stop again. He leaned back up and pulled away from her lips, taking one last sweep of her mouth, before looking her in the eyes.

He brushed her hair out of her face, and she smiled at him before placing a quick kiss on his lips and climbing out of his lap. Darien was so surprised at her; she acted as if he had no effect on her, when she so obviously had a strong one on him. Serena went back to putting her things together, when she looked back over at him as he continued to stare.

"What?" she asked, her hands on her hips.

"Nothing, just get ready." Darien said, sweeping his hair out of his eyes. Serena rolled her eyes and finished packing. Once she was done she walked towards the door, Darien right behind her. Suddenly, she stopped and turned to face him.

"Did you tell Andrew?" she asked, curiously.

"No, did you tell Mina?" he asked, just as curious. She bit down on her lip and smiled a little. Darien laughed lightly and kissed her forehead.

"I swear, girls can never keep secrets."

Serena scoffed at Darien, and pulled away from him.

"And men can never admit their feelings." Serena said simply, turning away and walking out of the door. Before she could get three steps away from him, Darien had caught her around the waist and pulled her to his body.

"I can admit that there's something different about you, and that I want to figure out what it is." He said, holding her closely. Serena couldn't help but melt in his arms, she felt so safe there, being held. His body was so strong and comforting to her small one. She could feel her heart doing flips, wanting so badly to burst out of her chest after hearing him say those words. She knew she had to be calm and collected, so she turned to him and smiled.

"Admit that to Andrew." And with that she kissed his cheek, and walked away, grabbing his hand at the last second and dragging him behind her.

"You are just so full of yourself." Darien said, allowing himself to be dragged down the stairs. "Why did you tell Mina?"

Serena laughed, "As if I actually told her. She guessed! She knows me and noticed that we were acting differently towards each other. That's what a best friend does." She said sitting on a couch.

"Well, thank you for calling my best friend inefficient." Darien said, sitting next to her and picking up the remote to the t.v.

"Oh, you know I didn't mean it like that. Girls just like pointing out things like this." Serena said, taking the remote out of Darien's hand. He looked at the blonde girl and lunged at her. Serena shrieked and tried to keep the remote from Darien, but she had no chance. His body was bigger, longer and stronger than hers. He grabbed the remote out of her hand, smirked at her and kissed her softly.

"That's what you get." He said, straightening up and changing the channel back to where he wanted it. Serena stuck her tongue out at him, and sat with her arms crossed over her chest. Darien laughed at her and continued to watch t.v. until Mina and Andrew got downstairs.

"Finally, you two took forever." Darien said, looking up at the two of them.

"Oh, we were just talking." Mina said, looking from Serena to Darien. He knew why she was looking at him that way, and chose to ignore her.

"Yea, because D, I hope you know that I _did_ notice a certain changed behavior between you and a certain girl." Andrew said nonchalantly. Serena turned pink and Darien rolled his eyes at him.

"I mean, we're your best friends. We know you guys. Fess up." Mina said, standing her ground next to Andrew.

"What would you like me to say?" Darien said, looking up at Andrew.

"That we were right." He said, simply, a smirk on his face.

Serena was glowing red as they talked. She couldn't believe that they were talking about this right now! The more they talked about this the more she felt more guilty. She had forgotten that Malcolm existed, that _Lita_ existed. The more she thought about it, the more disgusted she felt with herself. What had happened to her? She had never been the kind of girl to cheat on her boyfriend, and now her best friend was supporting it, even pushing it? Subconsciously, she pulled away from Darien's body, feeling even more awkward as the conversation continued.

"Fine." Darien responded, then ignoring Andrew.

"Good." He replied, "Now, let's get going! We have so much to do!" Andrew said, getting everybody back on track, and clearing Serena's thoughts. She immediately perked up and grabbed Darien's hand and pulled him to the door.

"Mina, let's go!" she squealed, and Mina grabbed Andrew and they were out the door in record timing. The two men were being dragged everywhere, and neither seemed to mind all that much, as long as the girl who was pulling them was having a good time. They piled into the car, Mina and Serena in the backseats, and headed out to have more adventures.

Their theme for today was water sports, they had already gone snorkeling the day before, but this time they were going to try water skiing, jet skis and tubing. Serena had never tried any of these activities, but she was excited nonetheless. Darien and Andrew, as usual, were experts on everything. They had both spent numerous times doing all of the above. At this time they were going to a secluded body of water, where Darien's family owned a boat house and jet skis.

"Gosh Darien, what _don't_ you have?" Serena asked as they walked down to the boat house.

"A pet, never had one of those." Darien smiled at Serena as she giggled at him. That noise made him unreasonably cheerful.

The four of them climbed down the stairs and towards the dock. Darien and Andrew did all the basic maneuvers in order to get the boat down off the lift and into the water. They figured they would start off with an easy activity… tubing. As they all piled onto the boat, Darien and Andrew explained to the girls that all they really had to do was hold on to the tube. Both men had interesting ideas about what was going to happen once they were in open water.

---------------

The group of four was climbing out of the car, both girls looked exhausted, meanwhile the two guys looked as if they had had the time of their lives. Darien and Andrew kept sneaking smirks at one another, which did not go unnoticed by Mina and Serena. They got into the house and went straight to their bedrooms to shower and relax.

Serena climbed underneath the warm jets of water, and relaxed all the muscles in her body. She could not believe Darien and Andrew! They had taken the girls for insane rides on the water. Darien and Andrew seemed to enjoy themselves when Serena and Mina were being dragged behind the boat, clinging to the tube. At first, she had thought they were merely being cruel, but after being thrown off once, she realized that it was all in good fun, however mean it had started out to be. She and Mina ended up becoming much more stable, and had enjoyed the rides, but what they did not enjoy was the water skiing. Both girls had failed trying to get up on the skis, which earned insults and jokes from the two guys, who got up with such ease and grace. The two even knew how to do simple tricks, laughing the entire time. Her favorite part had been the jet skis, and Darien had even let her drive him. The feeling of speed on the water, the bumps and splashes made everything more enjoyable. That was the best time of the entire adventure, but still she had tried new things, and she was happy with herself.

Serena got out of the shower and got ready to go downstairs by pulling on her lounge pants and a simple white tank top. She pulled open her door and walked past Darien's to the stairs. When she hit the stairs, Darien had just emerged from his room, black hair tousled and pulling a shirt on.

"Serena, wait up." He called to her, pulling his shirt over his head. Serena watched as the muscles in his body began to flex. That had been one of her favorite parts of the day; Darien's strength was making her want him even more.

Serena turned to him and laughed, "Says the guy who tried to kill me while tubing today."

That smirk that Serena loved so much, flashed onto Darien's face, making him look more handsome and seductive.

"I would never try to kill you, where would I find another intern?" he asked, walking up to her and smiling. Serena rolled her eyes and continued walking down the stairs, as Darien laughed his deep laugh at her.

The two of them sat down on the couch in front of the t.v. and Darien turned it on to search for a good movie or show. Mina and Andrew came down after a couple of minutes and they helped pick out a movie. Serena had no care for what they watched… she knew she would end up asleep during the first few minutes. As the movie began, Serena curled up and fell asleep twenty minutes into the movie. Darien watched her out of the corner of his eye; he didn't want Andrew or Mina to make a big deal out of him watching Serena sleep. He simply wanted to make sure she slept peacefully. He watched her for the first hour of the movie, taking in the beauty of the sleeping girl. Serena looked as if nothing could harm her, she looked happy lying there on the couch. Darien caught himself smiling down at her figure, curled up within itself, it was the cutest thing he had seen in a very long time… in fact this was the first time in ages that he had even used that word!

Andrew watched Darien as he gazed down at Serena's sleeping figure. He noticed the genuine care that was in his eyes for the girl who cuddled into the couch. Andrew was holding Mina's sleeping body in his arms, as he continued to calculate his best friend's body language. He could tell that Darien wanted nothing more than to touch her, but for some reason he held it all in. Andrew was surprised to see that much care in his eyes, and it made him upset for his best friend because he knew it would come down to a battle between Malcolm and him, and Andrew really had no clue what would be the outcome. Trying to be helpful, Andrew got up and pulled Mina's sleeping body into his arms, holding her tight.

"I'm going up to bed, you should probably take her up too." Andrew said, turning his back on Darien and carrying Mina to the stairs, and to her bedroom.

Darien continued to look down at Serena and brushed her cheek with the back of his hand, feeling her warmth. He smiled down at her, and scooped her small body into his arms. Serena stirred a bit, cuddled into his body, then went back to a soundless sleep. Darien couldn't help but be proud of himself, that he had been accepted by her. He walked up the steps and carried her into her room, lowering her onto her bed. She stirred again, and opened her eyes a bit.

"Darien?" Serena mumbled, as Darien smiled down at her, touching her face.

"Yea?"

"Will you stay with me?" she whispered, her eyelids fluttering open, then closed. Darien smiled at her, and kissed her lips. Serena flashed a smile, her eyes still closed. He knew it would not be a good decision to get in bed with her, although he wanted nothing more than to do just that.

"Maybe some other time, okay? Get some rest, we have meetings tomorrow." Darien chuckled as he saw Serena's sleeping face frown a bit. He walked back to the door and shut it quietly, going back to his own room.

Darien stripped down and climbed into bed, wishing that he would stop doing the decent thing and allow his body to do as it pleased. He wanted so badly to feel Serena's body curled up against his, to hear her steady breathing and the beat of her heart. Darien was aching for the day when he would be able to wake up and see her smiling up at him, anxious to kiss him. He hated how life never worked in his favor, and that for the first time when he was being sincere, he would not end up with the prize.

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A/N: Hey guys, I'm so sorry about how long it took for this chapter to come up, I'm swamped with work! College is no joke, but every spare moment I have I try to write something! Tell me how you like it, as always I love to hear your comments!


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I am so sorry that it has taken me this long to update, but the semester got really hectic and I had to buckle down (I'm a chemistry major) and get everything done. But here's the next chapter! And trust me, I'll dedicate my month-long winter break to updating and writing new chapters, promise!

Hope you enjoy, and please please please REVIEW!!!!!

Thanks :)!

-------------Chapter 11

Serena woke up early the next morning to her phone ringing. As soon as she heard the ring tone, she knew who was calling her. Her heart did flips, and she for some reason, got excited as she picked up the phone.

"Hey! I've missed you!" Serena said, sitting up in her bed, smiling. As soon as she had registered her actions, she wanted to smack herself! How is it that even when she had begun to kiss and want Darien, that she could still be so excited to hear from Malcolm. These feelings had to be illegal, at the very least.

"Hey baby, I've missed you too. You wouldn't believe how boring it is here without you to spend time with." He said in that tone, the tone that made her feel cared about.

Serena and Malcolm talked on the phone for an hour, just talking about everything in general. It wasn't the first time she had talked to him since she had arrived, but it had been a while since the weekend had occurred. Things were different, but yet, the same with Malcolm. He was still his charming self, joking and laughing with her. It was at that time that she really appreciated having him in her life. They got off the phone after a while so that both of them could get showered and ready for work.

The time Serena spent in her shower she used to try to think about her current situation. It wasn't a habit that she _cheated_ on a boyfriend of hers. The only problem was that if she was willing to cheat on her boyfriend (something she had never done before), then something about Darien must be special. However, that would mean she chose Darien, which she wasn't sure of.

The other side of that same argument said that if she was willing to cheat, she was over Malcolm. But she wasn't. If she were over him, then she wouldn't have been so excited to hear from him at such an early hour. When she had seen the caller I.D. she had immediately smiled at the phone.

Serena's logic was working in both ways, and neither was correct. There must be a perfectly good explanation for the way she was falling for two men. Technically, she could simply be 'dating,' that way she wasn't hurting anybody. But no, again that wouldn't work, Malcolm and her were exclusive, and she knew that. Nothing was making sense to her anymore.

Serena got out of the shower and decided not to worry too much about it at the moment. She dried herself off and got ready for their meeting, which was the last 4 hour long meeting they had the rest of the convention. As she put the last touches on her make-up, she slipped on her white pumps and walked out of her room. She walked up to Darien's door and knocked on it, patiently waiting. There was no answer. She knocked again, but still no answer. She sighed and walked into the room.

Darien was nowhere to be found, his bed was empty and so was his bathroom. Of course Darien would have already been dressed and ready to go; this was the business man that was ready for anything. Serena walked out and down the steps to find him sitting at the table, a newspaper in his hand. Her stomach did flips as she walked up behind him and slid her hands down his chest.

"Good morning, boss." She said, planting a kiss on his neck. He put his paper down, took her hand, and pulled her towards him, kissing her lips.

"Good morning." He said, smirking up at her. Serena rolled her eyes, and went to find her some breakfast. She grabbed some fruit and put it in a bowl.

"What are we going over today?" she asked, interested in the papers that were now taking the place of the newspaper in front of Darien. He motioned for her to join him then explained the information on the papers and what it all meant to the company. It was their normal routine; teaching and being taught. After they had finished going over the notes for the meeting, Andrew finally climbed down the stairs and joined them.

"I'm exhausted, thank god today is only 4 hours. I'm going to need a nap." He said, yawning. Serena giggled, there was only one reason Andrew would be so tired at ten thirty in the morning. Andrew looked up at the way Serena was staring at him and winked at her. She couldn't help but giggle more.

"Thanks for the update on your sex life, Andrew." Darien said, rolling his eyes.

"Not my fault I have one." Andrew mumbled, knowing better than to say it loud enough to be heard. He knew that it would cause an awkward moment, and he didn't want to ruin the nice time that the two of them seemed to have been sharing.

"Alright, it's time to go. Grab a coffee mug or if you want, you can get some at the hotel." Darien said, getting up and grabbing his briefcase. Andrew mimicked his movements almost identically.

"Hotel can make it better than I can." He said, walking out with Darien on his left. Serena trailed behind them, watching Darien's long lean body move with each step. He really was a piece of work, and she was so drawn to him.

---------------

They had finished their meeting and were back in the Shields' house. Serena was stretched out on the couch in a tank top and shorts while Mina and Andrew were lying together across from her. Darien was watching the three lounge around from the kitchen stool he sat on. He had no intentions of going out and doing something, and he was sure that the others were on the same page. Going out to the beach and relaxing seemed to be his idea of a good adventure.

"Want to go down to the beach, and just hang out?" Darien asked, getting up from his stool and walking towards the couch Serena was laying on. Serena perked up and immediately agreed.

"Yes! That sounds so good!" she said, getting up. Mina and Andrew remained on the other couch, which it looked like they had no intention of moving from.

"I really don't want to." Andrew said, pulling Mina closer to his body and shutting his eyes again. Mina shook her head in compliance.

"I'm exhausted, you two go ahead." She said, simply. Serena looked at her friend, puzzled that she had just turned down time to tan. Serena shrugged her shoulders and dragged Darien upstairs so they could change into bathing suits. Serena pulled out another new suit and threw it on then put shorts and a cammi on over it. Within five minutes, she was ready for the beach. She climbed down the stairs and waited in the kitchen for Darien to join her. He finally made his way down the stairs and joined her in the kitchen.

"You ready?" he asked, putting a hand on the small of her back. She turned to him and smiled.

"Yea! Let's go!"

Serena grabbed his hand and dragged him out to the beach. They walked hand in hand down to the edge of the beach. Serena threw down a towel, took off her shorts and cammi, put her sunglasses on, then lay down and shut her eyes. Darien couldn't help but just watch her lay there. He was admiring how fit and toned her body was. Serena pushed her sunglasses back and looked up at Darien.

"Are you going to lie down, or stand there all afternoon?" she asked, rolling her bright blue eyes.

"Sheesh, what an attitude. I'm going to get in the water for a bit, come on." He said, motioning towards the blue water.

Serena pushed her sunglasses back over her eyes and remained in her position on her towel. Darien shrugged as he removed his shirt.

"Suit yourself, blondie."

Serena watched Darien as he walked down to the water; even his back was hott! The muscles that ran down his back were well sculpted. She couldn't help but admire his form as he dove right into the waves, and came back up smoothly. There was no way he was human, Serena thought, he was just too perfect. She sighed as she removed her sunglasses and made her way down to the water.

As she reached the water, Darien turned towards her and smiled. Serena couldn't help but feel weak at the knees whenever he flashed that broad grin.

"Come on in, it feels great." He called out to her as he dove underneath the waves again. Serena walked gingerly up to the point where the waves were coming in and allowed the warm water to cover her feet. She smiled at the sensation and walked the rest of the way into the ocean. Once she was half-way into the water, she imitated Darien and dove under the next wave, completely submerging herself. After a couple of seconds, she resurfaced and wiped the water out of her face.

Darien watched as Serena's long hair flowed behind her, spreading out with the waves. He approached Serena and pulled her body to his as he kissed her neck, tasting the salt on her skin.

"You are beautiful." It was a simple sentence, but Serena smiled so hard as she turned into Darien's arms.

"So are you." She said, smiling up at him. Serena leaned into his body and let his arms fold around her waist and pull her closer. His lips met with hers and soon she was lost in his kiss.

This time it was something she had never before experienced with him, she was so deep in his arms, in his touch that she couldn't bear to pull away from him. She pushed her body onto him even more, and with one strong movement, his arms slipped under her legs and lifted her up. Serena wrapped her legs around his waist as her hands caressed his face and she continued to kiss him, tasting him and giving herself to him. The waves crashed around them, but it was as if they weren't there, the two were so engulfed in each other that nothing else seemed to exist.

Darien was losing control; the pressure of her body on his was building up inside of him. He tried to slowly pull away from the blonde beauty, but she held onto him even tighter than before, making matters more difficult for him. After a couple more intense minutes, he released her legs and placed her back into the water, taking his lips away from hers. Serena's face was flushed pink and her lips were pink as well, but she looked him in the eyes and smiled.

"I love doing that with you." She said simply, running her right hand from his cheek down his chest and over his stomach to the waistband of his swim trunks. He quickly took her hand away and kissed her one last time.

"Oh just wait for the other things." He said, winking at her. Surprise and embarrassment flashed through Serena's blue eyes, but she composed herself quickly, taking his hand and leading him back to the shores.

"I guess only time will tell."

The two of them walked back to the beach and lay out on towels, and passed the time by talking and laughing, and their favorite- kissing. Serena couldn't remember the last time she had felt so comfortable with somebody. After hours of kissing, tanning, swimming and talking they rolled up their things and went up to the house.

Mina and Andrew had left a note saying they had gone out for dinner and would be back late. So both of them made dinner for each other and relaxed in front of the tv enjoying each other's company as they had done throughout the day. Darien had forgotten how good it felt to hold a woman in his arms, and feel her warmth. It had been years since he had felt that strong emotion of protection. Serena just fit so well in his arms that he couldn't help but feel even more comfortable with her. The two of them lay on the couch watching TV for a while, but seemed to tire quickly of the shows that were on. They resorted instead to focusing on each other.

Darien was kissing Serena softly as his hands slid under her shirt and into her bra, cupping the perfect breasts he had been admiring the entire trip. Serena couldn't help but let small moans escape her mouth as she let herself melt into his hands. She had her own hands underneath Darien's shirt, caressing his strong stomach and tracing the lining of his shorts. Serena couldn't help but let her mind wander and savor in the way Darien was touching her. He was making her feel as nobody else had ever made her feel. The way his fingers brought tingles to her body, and the way her fingertips felt against his skin was something she had never experienced before. Darien also couldn't remember the last time a woman's touch had rendered him to caress instead of fondle. His actions surprised him, but the way that Serena's body trembled at his touch couldn't have made it any more pleasurable. The two of them played around for a bit before heading upstairs. Darien walked Serena all the way to her room and smiled at her as she placed her lips over his again, allowing an electric shock to go down his spine. He grinned as he pulled away from her.

"Goodnight, Serena." He said, as he started planting small kisses along her neckline.

"Goodnight, Darien." Serena said giggling a bit before stealing a quick kiss then running into her room and shutting the door on him. Darien stood there smirking and went back to his own room where he was unable to rid himself of the feelings and sensations that had been growing all day. He knew that he wanted her, but it was horrible timing.

Serena buried herself under the pillows and for two hours contemplated her options between Malcolm and Darien. Things were getting so out of hand in her mind that she just couldn't think straight anymore. She grabbed her silk bathrobe and walked out of her room, quietly tiptoeing down the hall. As she walked by Darien's room, she had the deepest urge to simply climb in bed with him, just to feel those strong arms protecting her. Serena thought about the last feelings she had while around him, and lust filled her veins. She had never wanted a man as much as she wanted him. Serena shook her head and continued down the stairs to the kitchen where she rummaged through the refrigerator.

"Serena, what are you doing up so late?" a deep voice asked her from a dark corner of the kitchen.

Serena nearly jumped out of her skin as she spun around to see Darien getting up from the sofa he had been lying on. He walked towards her, wearing nothing but a pair of basketball shorts. Serena's mind began working overtime creating fantasies revolving around Darien and his gorgeous body.

"Oh, uh nothing, I couldn't sleep." Serena said simply, watching as Darien stopped in front of her.

Darien laughed a bit, "Getting warm milk, then?" he asked, a smirk on his face.

"No!" Serena said, turning away from him and looking back into the fridge. "I'm looking for something to snack on. I'm hungry."

Darien couldn't help but continue to laugh at her as he stood back and watched her go through all the items in the refrigerator. Finally, she emerged with a bowl of grapes and a water bottle. Serena turned to Darien and slipped past him and sat down at the kitchen island on a bar stool and began picking at various grapes, popping one after another into her mouth.

"Would you like some?" she asked, nicely.

Darien smiled at her and walked over to where she sat and stood behind her, picking at various grapes as well.

"So what are you doing down here so late?" Serena asked as she looked up and into his eyes.

"I couldn't sleep either." He said simply, looking back into her eyes. Serena turned away from him and continued eating more grapes, attempting to choose her words carefully.

As she turned towards Darien to form the question of whether or not she could stay with him, just this one night, he took her lips with his again. The feel of his lips eliminated anything that she had formed in her mind and she could only focus on the feeling that had overcome her body. After a few seconds, Darien pulled away from her.

"Now, what were you saying?" he asked, looking her in the eyes.

Serena had completely forgotten what it was she had been so eager to ask of Darien, but just as quickly remembered it when she thought of the endless kisses that could be had for the rest of the night.

"Well, seeing as how neither of us can sleep…" she began.

"Yes?" Darien asked, he had a vague idea of what she wanted to ask him, and he wanted to admire her for being so bold, so he decided not to help her.

"Well, since neither of us can sleep alone," she began again, this time putting her hands on his chest and standing in front of him, "we should try together, in the same bed." She finished, looking Darien straight in the eyes.

Darien was impressed with the way she had asked him, and smiled down at her. Instead of answering her, he kissed her lips again. Serena slid her hands up his chest and around his neck as he picked her up and placed her on the island, moving the bowl of grapes aside. With Serena sitting on top of the counter, Darien placed his body between her legs, and pulled her body further onto his. Serena wrapped her long legs around his waist and continued kissing him. Darien pulled away and began kissing her slowly down her neckline. Serena closed her eyes and enjoyed the sensations going through her body. Darien continued to caress her skin with his lips, savoring the taste while his hands massaged her body; he wanted Serena to feel good, better than how any other man had made her feel. He wanted to be the only one who could make her breathe heavily or let out small moans with every inch of skin he kissed. Serena had never felt this way before, she felt a fire burning deep within her, and knew that it wasn't long until it would become unstoppable. To Serena's disappointment, Darien kissed up her neck and left a soft kiss on her lips, then pulled away from her.

"Let's go up to bed, we still have work to do in the morning." He said, smiling down at her and placing his hand in hers.

"Right. Let's go, I'm tired." Serena finished, grabbing Darien's hand and getting down off the counter.

Darien led the way to his room, as he gently gripped Serena's hand; he wanted to make sure she wasn't going to change her mind. Serena was more than willing to follow Darien wherever he led her, she trusted him more than any other man. She was surprised that she wasn't worried or unsure about the entire thing; however she knew it was because Darien was unlike any man she had ever met. They approached his bedroom door, and with a sly grin Darien looked back at her, opened the door and led her inside.

"Welcome to my bedroom." Darien said, pulling Serena towards him by the hand held gently in hers.

Serena looked up into his eyes and smiled as she crushed her lips to his, taking in everything that was going on. Darien closed the door and wrapped his arms around her slender waist and pulled her closer to his body. Again, with a swift movement, Darien slid his hands to Serena's legs and picked her up. Serena wrapped her legs around Darien's waist as he began walking backwards until they had fallen ungracefully onto his bed. The two lay on Darien's bed exchanging furious tongues from one mouth to the next. Darien was untying the sash to Serena's robe, opening it to reveal her nightgown underneath. The feeling of being on top of her was making his urges unbearable. He let his tongue sweep through Serena's mouth, trying to relay to her how much he wanted her. The nightgown she was wearing was itching to come off, but he didn't want to rush her.

Serena was losing it as she began to caress the skin on his chest. She couldn't help but get turned on by the feeling of skin to skin contact. She felt Darien tugging at her robe, and was getting anxious for him to take it another step forward. Serena was unsure if she wanted him to continue to undress her, but at this point, she trusted his instincts more than hers. The last time she had been in this predicament… well, she couldn't even remember. It had been such a long time since she had been with a man.

Darien began to stop his advances and pulled away from Serena's lips. He began to slowly kiss her neck as she closed her eyes and let her body be overtaken. Darien continued down her neck and kissed down to her collar bone, then back up again. He returned to her lips and kissed her softly before he pulled away from her lips completely. He smiled at her as she looked into his eyes, a confused look on her face.

"I think its time we got to bed." Darien said in a mock tone.

"Yes, boss." Serena said, grinning at him.

Darien stole another kiss before he got off his bed and opened the covers so Serena could just crawl underneath them, which she did immediately. Darien smiled at her then he slid into bed. As soon as he was lying down, he grabbed Serena's waist and pulled her body towards his and wrapped his body around hers. It was amazing how good she felt in his arms.

"Goodnight again Darien." Serena said as she turned towards his face to quickly get a kiss.

"Goodnight Serena." He said, smiling.

He kissed her again, and again. Darien couldn't help it; he couldn't keep his mouth away from hers. Serena started giggling as she kissed him back. She gently pushed his shoulder back so that he lay down, and she climbed on top of him. Placing one leg on either side of his body, Serena situated herself and continued kissing Darien. He couldn't help himself, he had to touch and caress her. His hands began to massage and travel up and down her body. It was apparent how bad he wanted her. Darien's hands ran up the length of her body, and pulled her closer to him. He wrapped one arm around her waist, and very skillfully, switched positions so that he was on top of her. Serena giggled as Darien settled in-between her legs and on top of her. Serena smiled up at Darien and he kissed her softly.

"This might be a problem, I can't stop kissing you." Darien admitted, taking Serena's hand and kissing her palm. Serena smiled down at him.

"Well, damn I guess we'll just have to keep kissing." Serena said, taking his face into her hands and kissing him again. Darien smiled into the kiss and pulled away from her lips.

"We are never going to sleep, and you need sleep. Otherwise, you won't be able to look all sexy in your work outfit tomorrow morning." He said, a smirk on his face.

Serena laughed at Darien as she shook her head back and forth. Another quick kiss and she pulled away.

"Oh, I'll always look hot in my work outfits." Serena said, smiling.

Darien grinned at her and kissed her lips again. He could feel his body losing its ability to control the urges he felt as he lay on top of Serena's amazing body. He kissed her again, this time savoring her taste. Serena began to run her hands across Darien's body.

Darien's hands traveled all over her body, leaving nothing untouched. He reached the hem of her nightgown and pushed it up as he caressed her upper thigh and hip. He couldn't help but continue to move up her leg. Darien smiled as he reached the strap to her thong, and looped a finger around it. Serena didn't know what to expect, so she let things unfold. Darien let another small smile form on his face as he felt Serena's body tense up a bit. Just for laughs, Darien took the strap to her thong and snapped it. Serena jolted underneath him and pulled away from his lips. Darien laughed at her startled face.

"That was unnecessary!" Serena giggled.

"All the more reason to do it." Darien laughed, kissing her again.

And with that kiss, everything started up again. Serena couldn't get enough of the body that was on top of hers. Every muscle she touched on Darien's body lit a fire deep inside her. She couldn't help but trace the skin right above his waistband. She tucked a finger into his waistband, and snapped it as well. Darien's body went tense as Serena went into his shorts. He laughed as she snapped his waistband. He couldn't help but wish she had continued further into his shorts.

Darien continued to run his hands up Serena's nightgown, tugging at her straps. As he continued to kiss her, he ran his hands up her stomach and back down. He reached her thong again, and slowly began pulling down the front. Serena couldn't control herself, as she subconsciously allowed him better access. She couldn't control the urges she was feeling and allowed Darien to continue making advances. Serena started feeling bolder and began tugging at his shorts in attempt to pull them down.

All of a sudden, Serena let out a moan into the kiss the two had been sharing. Darien had slipped a finger inside Serena. It had been a long time since she had felt anything inside of her. Darien slowly began moving in and out of her. The moans that came from Serena did something to him. He wanted to keep making her feel good, and to make her want him. Serena couldn't remember the last time she had felt so amazing, and since Darien was doing a great job on her, she felt as if she needed to return the favor. Lust and curiosity were killing her as she began to slip her hands into his shorts.

Darien jerked to attention as he felt Serena's soft hands wrap around his member. He groaned into the kiss as Serena began motions that would set him off. Darien almost let himself be swept away, but he couldn't let it happen. He pulled away from Serena's lips and out of her, then stopped her hands. Serena looked up at him, confused as to why he would stop her.

"Please… please, don't get me started. If you start now, I won't be able to stop myself." He said, a sigh of relief as she released him.

"What if I don't want you to stop yourself?" She said, a bold look in her eyes.

Darien smiled at Serena, and lightly kissed her for a little bit. He pulled away from her, but let his hand wander back down to where it had been before.

"No, not yet. Right now it's about you." He said as he kissed her again.

Darien slipped his finger back inside of her, allowing Serena to be overwhelmed with pleasure. He liked the feeling of knowing what he could do to her. He picked up the pace as he added another finger inside of her. Serena couldn't take it; Darien was making this feel better than anybody ever had. She couldn't help but constantly let out moans as he would hit a spot and do it exactly the way she wanted it. Darien pulled away from her mouth and kissed down her neck as she continued to moan. With his free hand, he pulled her nightgown down over her chest, and began kissing down to her left breast. He kissed around it, until he took her nipple into his mouth and began sucking on it.

Serena was losing it; she hadn't felt this incredible in what were probably years. She couldn't help but lose herself in the moment and allow Darien free reign on her body. Darien knew exactly what her body wanted, and was giving it just that. With Darien's hott mouth going from one nipple to the next, and the rapid fingering, Serena was getting extremely close to losing it. She closed her eyes and arched her back, allowing Darien both better entrance inside her, and access to her breasts. Serena had lost all train of thought and was only able to moan in great satisfaction.

"Oh my god, Darien! … this feels so good! … please! … keep going!" she moaned.

The way Serena moaned Darien's name, made him lust for her. Within the next two minutes, Serena let out a loud moan, and arching her back off the bed, gripped the sheets. It had been so long since she had received such pleasure. Serena lay back down as Darien let her come down off her peak. He pulled his fingers out of her, and softly kissed her neck as she relaxed. Inside, he was smiling to himself; feeling accomplished after making Serena feel so good. It was its own reward. After a few minutes she turned to him and smiled.

"Darien 1, Serena 0. I'll catch up, trust me." She said with a sly smirk.

Darien laughed at her as he kissed her lips one last time. He situated himself according to Serena's body. It was his goal to make sure she remained comfortable. Darien was a man, and he protected his woman. As Serena crawled into his arms, he kissed her forehead and let her cuddle up to him as much as she liked. With one last kiss, they settled down together and fell asleep.

**----------------**

Sooo? How'd you like it?! This one was a little bit more PG-13 than the other ones, but I felt like we needed to establish their relationship a little more.

Tell me how you feel about it, should there be no more touching? Review!


	12. Chapter 12

Sorry for the long wait again, but I'm doing all that I can! Don't forget to review once you've finished reading, it helps a lot with my writing :)

~ladytruth

--------------Chapter 12

Serena woke up early that morning feeling incredibly relaxed. The warmth radiating off Darien's body comforted her almost as much as the pressure of his body on hers. She was curled up into his chest, her arm thrown over his bare torso, while his arms were wrapped around her waist, holding her close. Serena smiled as she snuggled further into his chest, and Darien responded by pulling her closer to him.

"Good morning." Darien said, kissing her forehead. Serena smiled and looked up at him.

"Morning."

"How'd you sleep?" Darien asked as he ran a hand over his face, trying to wake himself up.

"Really well, you?" Serena responded. Darien looked down at her and smiled.

"Eh, it was alright I guess." He said laughing as Serena turned away from him, taking her arms off his body and separating herself from him. Darien couldn't help but keep laughing at Serena as she curled up as far away from him as she could.

"Oh come on, I was kidding." Darien said, rolling over and enveloping her body with his own.

"Aw, come on, don't be mad at me." He said, nuzzling into her neck, leaving kisses on her neck and shoulders.

"No." Serena said, trying to pull away from Darien. He continued to laugh as she squirmed beneath him, unable to break free of his body.

"Get off! You're huge!" she said, trying to break free.

"Mmm, I know you found that out last night." Darien said, pulling her waist against his. Serena giggled, but then quickly stopped.

"Darien!" she said, in her fake angry voice. Darien laughed his deep laugh, and moved his strong body on top of Serena's so she had no choice but to acknowledge his presence.

"Now, listen to me. I was kidding, I slept very well next to your sexy body, okay?" he said, as he began kissing her neck again.

"Why do you insist on always kissing my neck?" Serena asked, fighting back her urge to allow him more access.

"Because I like turning you on." Darien said as Serena giggled, letting her guard down. Serena moved her head towards his, so she could get to his lips.

"Well, how bout I turn you on instead?" Serena suggested, letting her fingers run down his body. Darien smiled as he leaned down to kiss her. Serena leaned in and brushed her nose against his, then pulled away from him.

"Time to get ready for work." She said, rolling out from beneath him. Darien groaned and slumped back into the bed. Serena giggled as she hopped out of bed and picked up her robe off the ground where Darien had thrown it the night before.

"Unfair." Darien said, as he turned over onto his back.

"Who said it had to be?" she said, smiling as she walked out his bedroom door to go shower and get ready for the day.

"Woah, woah, come back here!" Darien said, right before Serena shut the door.

"What?"

"Oh, I was just thinking that since we shared the bed, you might want to share the shower too." Darien said, flicking the hair out of his eyes as he smirked at her. Serena shook her head and closed the door behind her as she headed out.

Darien lay back in his bed and relaxed. He couldn't explain why his body felt so relaxed, or why he had woken up in such a good mood. His most logical guess would be Serena's effect on him. It had been years since he had woken up with a woman in his arms, and the way it made him feel had him regretting that. Although, he figured had it been any of his one night stands, the feeling would not have been the same. Darien got out of bed and went into his bathroom and turned on the water to his shower, and undressed while he waited for the water to turn hot. After a bit, he got in and let his body be soothed by the water. After about 10 minutes, he was out and drying his hair, picking out his next suit. Quickly and expertly changing into a suit, fixing his tie and putting on the correct shoes, Darien walked out of his bedroom down to the kitchen.

Darien pulled together his usual coffee, grabbed the newspaper and sat down reading the only section he really cared about, the business section. He read up on all the expansions, reductions and stock updates before putting his newspaper down and resorting to his papers for this morning's meeting. They had finished the last of the long meetings, and were only confined to this particular meeting for 3 hours. However in all honesty, he didn't want to wait that long before he could have Serena all to himself again. As soon as her name crossed his mind, he felt her slender hands slide down his shoulders to his chest then down to his abs. She placed her lips against his neck and kissed him, allowing him to get excited.

"Took you long enough to get ready. I've already finished the news." He said, smirking at her as she rolled her eyes at him.

"You're the one who wants me to look good in my work outfits, right?"

"Let me look at you." He said, taking her arms and pulling her around to the front of him. Darien smiled as he admired her long legs that were showing just enough to be appropriate, and just enough to make him beg for more leg. The dress she wore came to a bit above knee length, and hugged her features delicately.

"Do you approve?" Serena said, a smirk on her face as she watched Darien's eyes roam her body. She loved knowing her body tempted him, and that she could elicit that feeling even when she was fully clothed in her boring work attire.

"Very much so." He said, smiling. "Now, time for work, you haven't gone over the files for today… Wait, where the hell is Andrew?" Darien asked, realizing that Andrew had yet to come down at all.

"Calm down, he's right behind you. Amazing how you can completely ignore your best friend and business partner when you're looking at a pair of gorgeous legs, huh?" he said, from behind the two.

"Morning, Andrew."

"Good morning, Serena. How was your night?" he asked, as Serena's cheeks immediately turned pink.

"Oh… it was, uh, fine. It was good." Serena answered nervously. She never knew what to say to those types of things.

"Of course it was good, she stayed with me last night." Darien said, nonchalantly as Andrew sat down and they began to read over the files. Serena looked from one man to the other, but neither mirrored her worry or embarrassment. Andrew laughed a bit and shook his head at Darien, but made no other smart remarks.

"That's it? No smack talk about us?" Serena asked, baffled.

"I mean if you want, I can lay into you guys…"

"No, no, no that's fine!" Serena interjected quickly. "I'm just surprised. Normally, you can't keep those retorts down." She replied as she finally took a seat on the left of Darien.

"Oh, I'm sure I'll have plenty more opportunities to make rude statements about you guys, trust me." Andrew said, laughing.

The three of them went over the morning set up and then headed out to the hotel so they could attend their meeting. Darien couldn't help but appreciate the roles that Serena played so well. She understood that when it came to his business, he had no time for games and that he wanted perfection- nothing but the best. She understood that his priorities were not with her, but with other men and women who controlled various branches of his companies, or of companies he wanted to acquire. Thankfully, she understood that, although she was making a great deal of progress, Andrew was the first person he went to with concerns, and that he trusted him with everything he had. Darien considered her understanding to be a form of respect; that she didn't want to be given any free advances she hadn't rightfully earned herself. Darien loved how well she played her secretary role, but he was much more impressed with her role as the woman he was able to relax and be himself with. Serena knew he cared about her, but he would not let that get in the way of his business.

As Darien took his seat at the head of the business table, he looked over to his right side and nodded at his best friend and then looked over and saw Serena sitting on his left side and couldn't help but smile at her image. She was driving him crazy in ways she didn't even know. The way her dress cut down and exposed her chest, just a little, was enough to make him want to cancel the meeting and take her back to his bed. He brushed those thoughts away and sat down and organized his papers before starting.

As the three hours of discussion ended, Darien couldn't have been more excited. He was able to focus on his business, but as soon as the presentations were done and discussed, Darien was more than ready to finally plant his lips on Serena's. Serena was putting all of her things together, as Darien sat watching her movements, a smirk on his face. She looked up and saw Darien staring at her. She smiled and continued putting together her stuff, then stood up. Serena glanced over at Darien and rolled her eyes as he continued to sit there.

"Come on, don't you want to go back to the house?"

"Yea, you're right. Let's go."

Serena laughed as she and Andrew waited for Darien to get his stuff together. Once he finished, they left. Darien couldn't help but touch Serena as they walked out. Serena smiled as she felt Darien's hand slip around her waist and pull her to his side. She smiled up at him and he smiled back.

"Enjoy the meeting?" Serena asked.

"Yea, it went well. Everything seems to be going well with these current companies. I'm very happy about it." Darien reminisced about the previous businesses that he'd acquired over the past few months.

"Look at him, he's in heaven right now. Twenty bucks says he's thinking about the businesses we've gotten this year." Andrew said, laughing at the look on Darien's face.

"Can I help it that my business makes me happy?"

"No, I guess not. It's just, you'd think you were smiling so hard because of the gorgeous young woman on your arm, not the ugly businesses you've been buying and selling." Andrew said, smirking at the two.

Serena giggled as they climbed into the car and headed back to the house.

"Well that was my first reason." Darien said, defending himself. He glanced back at Serena from the driver's seat and winked at her. She smiled and shook her head.

"No, its okay, I know that business comes first. No big deal." Serena said, looking into Darien's eyes through the rearview mirror. He met her eyes and smiled up at her.

The rest of the ride was simple and fun, just like they normally were. Soon enough, they were walking through the front door, laughing and joking around. Serena shed her heels at the front door as Darien and Andrew removed their suit jackets.

"I can't wait to lay around with you." Darien said, taking Serena into his arms and smiling down at her.

"Same, but let me get changed first. Ok?" she said, taking his arms out from around her and running up the stairs to her bedroom. Darien shook his head at how quickly she was able to get away from him. It was killing him that he hadn't yet gotten a kiss. Things nearly always went his way, but Serena was a completely different story.

"Ugh, I need to get out of this suit…. What? Why are you looking at me like that?" Darien asked, looking at Andrew's face. But before he could even answer the question, there was a blonde blur, then Mina was attached to his body. She was kissing him furiously, and holding onto his body as if she hadn't seen him in years.

"I missed you. Why didn't you wake me this morning before you left?" Mina asked.

"I wanted you to rest, we had a long night." Andrew smirked as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Wanna go again?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

"Before I hear the answer to that question, I'm going to leave." Darien said, going upstairs and walking into his room. He threw off his clothes and quickly hung them up, then changed into a pair of basketball shorts and a regular t-shirt. He heard Serena knock on his door and he smiled to himself.

"Come in."

Serena walked in, wearing a small pair of shorts and a tank top. She leaned against the door and smiled at Darien.

"Hey, miss me?"

"Oh yea, and now I wanna kiss you." Darien said, smiling as he reached around her and put his arms around her waist and brought her closer to his body. He brushed the hair out of Serena's face before leaning in to take her lips with his. Serena smiled up at Darien, looking into his eyes. Something in Serena went calm; the look in Darien's blue eyes touched her. Serena ran her fingertips through his hair.

"I wanna kiss you too." Serena said, inches away from Darien's lips. Finally, their lips met and Serena couldn't stop smiling as she put her arms around his neck. Darien smiled with Serena as they continued kissing. Darien couldn't stop his hands from roaming over her body, touching her soft skin. His hands traveled from her waist down to her perfect ass, then to her legs. His hands traveled back up to her waist, then further up to caress her boobs. He slid one hand underneath her tank top and into her bra. Serena moaned into the kiss and pushed her body at him further. Serena's hands traveled down to Darien's torso and slipped under his shirt. With one swift movement, she pushed up his shirt, pulled away from his lips and took his shirt right off his body.

"Undressing me?"

"I like skin on skin contact."

"Well then I think your shirt should also come off." Darien said, smirking down at Serena. She leaned in and kissed him again, before he peeled off her tank top.

"Now we're even." He said, admiring what he had just uncovered.

"Not totally…" Serena said, hinting at the night before. Darien shook his head at her.

"Serena… don't worry about that. I want you to feel good, that's the goal." Serena sighed as Darien tried to comfort her.

"No fair, don't you think I want you to feel good as well?" she asked, looking him in the eyes.

"In time, I promise. I won't be able to control myself forever. Its hard controlling myself as it is."

Serena sighed, and looked up at him.

"Okay?" he said as he kissed her neck. Serena merely grunted at him.

"Okay?" he said as he kissed her neck again. Serena giggled as Darien kept leaving kisses along her neckline. Darien picked her up as she wrapped her legs around him.

"Fine. I agree, for now." Serena said, running her hands through his hair again, looking deep into his dark blue eyes. Darien smiled at her before he softly kissed her lips again. He walked Serena over to his bed and lay her down as he took her lips with his again. The feeling of her body beneath his was driving him wild, but again, he knew he couldn't continue on this track. He pulled away from her more than willing body, and ran his fingers through her hair.

"I think we should put our clothes back on and get some sun." Darien said, caressing the skin on her cheek. Serena kissed Darien again and pushed him off her body.

"Last one down buys dinner tonight!" Serena said as she grabbed her tank top off the floor and ran to the door. Darien laughed and got off his bed without even attempting to find his shirt. Serena laughed as she ran down the stairs, with Darien right behind her. Right before she made it to the kitchen counter, Darien grabbed her around the waist, swung her around and beat her to the table. As Serena caught her breath from laughing so hard, she walked into Darien's arms.

"I would love a steak dinner tonight, by the way." He said, kissing her forehead then heading to the couch where Mina and Andrew lay. Serena rolled her eyes as she followed him into the t.v. room and sat on the couch next to him.

The four of them lay around talking and laughing as they enjoyed the afternoon together. They switched environments from the house out to the beach. As Serena and Mina lay next to each other on their beach towels, they watched Darien and Andrew make fools of themselves while in the water. Serena liked seeing Darien this way, he seemed so carefree and fun. It was a completely different side of him, one that she had never seen until she had come on this trip.

"They are just ridiculous. I mean really, you would never have guessed that they were business men." Mina said as she shook her blonde head.

Serena giggled. "I think that's the whole point. They should be able to act like 3 year olds if they like. Normally they're boring." Serena said, as she turned over onto her stomach to even out her tan.

"Yea, I guess you're right... So, what's on the agenda tonight?" Mina wondered aloud. Serena was also thinking about the plans for the night.

"No clue, dinner out I think? I owe Darien." She said with a smile. Mina laughed out loud.

"You owe him? Seriously?" she asked, turning to look at her best friend.

"Yea, we raced down the stairs to see who bought dinner. I lost." Serena said, expecting Mina to understand and accept it. However, she continued to laugh.

"Why are you laughing?!" Serena asked, looking back at Mina.

"It's just funny. I mean, really Sere, think about it. He's your boss; he's the one that pays you! He's like, getting his money back." Mina said with another chuckle.

"Oh ha ha. It's not that big of a deal. I can treat him to dinner."

"Oh, there's nothing wrong with it at all. It's just weird that you're using the salary he gives you, to pay for his dinner." Serena rolled her eyes at Mina, and turned the other way.

After a bit, Darien and Andrew walked up onto the shore and came and lay with the girls. Darien snuggled up to Serena putting his arms around her.

"Oh my god, Darien, you're cold and wet!" Serena whined as Darien laughed and rubbed the rest of his wet body against her. Serena laughed as Darien shook the water out of his hair.

"Hey, we're at the beach, you're supposed to get wet!" he said, letting go and sitting back up. Serena rolled onto her back and looked up at Darien with a fake angry face. Darien laughed and turned to face Serena.

"Aww, you mad at me?" he said, sarcasm dripping from his words. Serena smiled at him, and shook her head no.

"Good." Darien said, leaning down and kissing Serena's lips. Serena smiled and sat up with Darien, as he pulled her into his arms.

"I have to admit, it kinda feels good." Serena said, rubbing against Darien's body.

"What feels good? Being held in my amazingly chiseled sexy body?" he said, smiling to himself. Serena burst out laughing, she couldn't believe Darien.

"You know, I love seeing this side of you."

"Oh, you mean my humble, relaxed self?" Darien suggested, laughing. Serena giggled.

"Hahaha, no. I meant your cocky arrogant side." Serena said, turning to face Darien.

"Sweetheart, you haven't experienced my cocky side." He said, raising an eyebrow at her. Serena giggled, and leaned up and kissed Darien.

"Hopefully, sometime I will." Serena said, looking into his eyes. Darien tightened his hold around Serena's waist and rubbed her thighs with his hands. He leaned in and kissed her again, a little longer than the first time.

"It is completely up to you." Darien said. Serena smiled, and shook her head.

"Oh, I know." Serena said, smiling brightly at him. She turned to face Mina who was laying on her beach towel as Andrew lay next to her, just talking.

"Mina, Andrew. What's the deal for tonight?" Serena asked, curious.

"Well, it's a Tuesday night. What do you want us to do?" Andrew asked.

"I don't know, I mean are we staying here? The meeting tomorrow doesn't start until 1. We can do anything tonight!"

"I have an idea." Darien said. "Why don't we spend the night at the boat house tonight? We can take a night ride in the boat and sleep in the house." Darien suggested, as he thought of how romantic it would be to hold Serena under the stars.

"I am so in!" Mina piped up, looking over at Darien and smiling ear to ear. Andrew only had to look at the excitement in Mina's eyes before turning to face Darien and agreeing.

"That sounds like a good idea." Andrew said, giving Darien a look that only the two would understand. Serena caught their exchange, but didn't make anything of it. The two had been friends for life, and odds were that she didn't want to know what they were silently exchanging. Serena was excited to be going to the boat house for the night. She'd never been able to go on a boat ride… except for the last time she was in Darien's boat, and that had not been pleasurable since she had been holding on to the tube attached to the boat for dear life!

"Well, I want to shower before we go." Serena said, getting up and offering a hand to Darien.

"Sure thing, we can leave whenever we're all ready." Darien said, taking Serena's hand and getting up as well.

The four of them gathered all of their belongings and headed back up to the house. Each went to their own rooms, although Andrew and Darien were hoping to entice the ladies to go along with him. Serena did her usual shower routine, then went and began packing up a bit for the night at the boat house. Her mind was doing over time as she thought of the various possibilities of what could happen over the night. Serena expected nothing more or less than what had been happening with Darien so far, but she couldn't help but feel anxious for things to go further. She pushed those feelings aside and packed her small bag with the necessities, and walked out of her room.

Darien was waiting patiently on the couch in the living room for Serena and Mina to come downstairs. Andrew was in the kitchen, eating grapes out of the bowl, looking incredibly bored.

"Those girls take forever, you know?" Andrew said, popping another grape into his mouth.

"Yea, what on earth do they do up there?" Darien said, turning the t.v. off and joining Andrew in the kitchen. He took a couple of grapes and ate them, thinking back to his previous encounter with grapes.

"No idea. I mean it wouldn't be worth the wait if they didn't come out looking and smelling so damn good." Andrew said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Darien chuckled, and continued to eat the grapes out of the bowl.

"Agreed. Anyway, what are we going to do tonight?" Darien asked. This was as much an opportunity for Andrew as it was for him.

"Night boat ride? Night hot tub? The usual I guess." Andrew said, laughing a bit.

"This is different, and you know it." Darien said, eyeing his best friend. Andrew continued to laugh as he ate another grape.

"Oh I know that, I just wanted to hear you say it." He said with a smirk.

"Get out of my house." Darien said, playfully pushing Andrew so that he missed his mouth entirely with the grape.

"Hahaha, no way kid!" Andrew said, lunging for Darien.

Serena and Mina came down the stairs and watched the two grown men play fight like children. Serena couldn't help but smile at the way Darien and Andrew were acting. Mina giggled as Andrew began losing to Darien. However, as soon as Darien got a hold of him, Andrew slipped out and managed to get a hold of Darien.

"Hey now break it up, or else I'll have to put you boys in a time-out. And trust me, time-outs now-a-days are much more cruel." Mina said as Andrew and Darien broke free. She slid into Andrew's arms and gave him a quick kiss. Serena smiled as Darien took her into his arms.

"Sure you wouldn't rather hold Andrew?" Serena said jokingly. Darien smiled and kissed her lightly.

"Yea, I'm pretty sure. I mean there are just too many complications with that relationship." Darien said.

"You guys have the ultimate bro-mance, it's so strange!" Mina said, giggling a bit.

"Really? What about you two? Always together, telling secrets and stuff?" Darien asked, looking from one girl to the other.

"We're girls. It's like, expected." Mina said simply, taking Serena's hand and pulling her towards her.

"True." Serena said, putting her arm around her best friend's waist as Mina did the same. Mina smirked and turned away from the boys and walked to the front door with Serena.

"You guys coming or not?" Serena called back to the two guys in the kitchen. Darien and Andrew looked at each other.

"Plan for tonight? Keep them apart and focused on us." Andrew said, grabbing his bag and heading for the door. Darien shook his head, grabbed his keys and bag, and headed to the front door and went out to the car with the other 3.

Serena stood outside of the door behind the driver's seat, waiting for him to unlock the door. Darien smirked and refrained from unlocking the door. Instead, he came up from behind Serena, turned her around and kissed her. He felt her entire body melt along with his, and he could hear a faint voice in the background, but it was of no importance to him. Slowly, he pulled away from her.

"That's to show what you can't do with Mina." He said, an inch away from Serena's lips. Serena felt like she couldn't breathe, Darien was so close to her that she felt as if she was melting. She had never felt anything close to what she was feeling, and she could think of only one proper response.

Serena swallowed hard, and closed her eyes, letting herself feel Darien's breath on her lips. It took all the energy she had to bring her hands to Darien's face and pull her lips back to his. This kiss was different than the rest, Serena wanted Darien to know how happy he was making her. As Serena pulled away, she smiled at Darien.

"Oh, I know. Hopefully we'll do a lot of that kind of stuff tonight." Serena said giving him another kiss. Darien smiled at her.

"Well then let's get going."

-------------

Sorry it took so long, I know that I'm doing badly at keeping up but trust me when I say I'm working on it every spare chance that I get. I also swear that things will probably be heating up one way or another next chapter. I've already got a good ways into it, so that one should be coming quickly!

Thanks in advance for your reviews! Tell me what you're thinking so far :)


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Hey all! Again, I apologize for the long wait, but here it is, finally! Hope you all enjoy it! Its longer than most chapters, and I've already begun on the next chapter, so stay tuned!**

------------ Chapter 13

The four of them were in the car, on the way to Darien's boat house. It was early evening when they pulled up to the house. It was a gorgeous house, something that most people would consider to be their regular home. However, of course for Darien, this was just a small vacation home that he had because property was a good investment. As they pulled up, Serena and Mina were, as usual, much more excited than the guys were. Both blondes were eager to get out onto the water and just have fun. They hopped out of the car and waited patiently for the slow moving men.

"Come on Andrew! Hurry up!" Mina squealed, as she and Serena waited by the front door. Darien rolled his eyes and threw Andrew a look, which he understood completely; these women were going to be the death of them.

"Calm down, the water isn't going anywhere." Darien said, finally getting to the door and unlocking it. The four of them walked into the warm house.

"Okay let's put our stuff away, put bathing suits on and get out there!" Mina said a huge grin on her face. She turned to the staircase and went up, two by two, Serena running after her. Once the two had disappeared up the steps, Andrew turned to Darien.

"When do you think they'll notice there's only two bedrooms?" he asked, grinning. Darien chuckled as he put his bag down in the living room.

"Who knows, but this will be great." He said, sitting down and relaxing, waiting for Serena to come and find him. Andrew sat down next to him and they both relaxed in anticipation of what was to be the girls' reaction.

Upstairs, the two blondes were giggling non-stop.

"I bet they think we'll come rushing downstairs and ask about the rooms." Serena laughed.

"Too bad we're smarter than that." Mina added, as she walked into the bathroom to change into her bathing suit, so Serena could change in the room as well. Both girls had decided to sleep in the same room. I mean, the boys' reactions would be priceless when they tell them. After a couple minutes, both girls were ready and dressed for the night ride. Each grabbed a sweatshirt and headed downstairs.

Serena got down to the first floor, and saw Darien and Andrew eyes closed relaxing on the couch. Serena nudged Mina and smiled. Mina winked, and went towards Andrew as Serena approached Darien. The two girls came around to the front of the couch and woke up the guys, and sat on their laps.

"Wake up, did you forget you promised us a night boat ride?" Serena asked, putting her arms around Darien's neck as his circled her waist.

"No, of course not." He replied, liking the way things were going. Serena smiled and leaned in and kissed Darien before she whispered into his ear.

"You realize there's only two bedrooms right?" she said, as Darien nodded. He was falling right into her hands.

"Know what that means?" she asked, as Darien nodded again, hopeful.

"It means I'm sleeping with… Mina."

Darien slowly pulled away from Serena's body, and looked at her smiling face.

"What?"

Serena giggled and nodded at him.

"Yea, Mina and I are going to share a bed." She said, watching his puzzled face.

"Why? Don't you remember what I told you before we got here?" he asked, searching her face for clues that were usually given away by her eyes.

"Yes, but I mean, no big deal, right?" she said, hiding her smile.

"Riiiight." Darien said. He looked away from him and punched Andrew in the arm.

"What?" he asked barely taking his eyes off Mina.

"They said they're sharing a room." Darien said. Andrew looked at Darien and laughed.

"No way!" he said, looking from Darien back to Mina.

"Yes, way." Mina said, smiling.

"You're joking, right? I'm not sleeping with him!" Andrew said, pointing at Darien, who nervously laughed.

"Hell no, we're not sleeping together." Darien said, shaking his head. Serena laughed and kissed him again.

"If you want to sleep with me, just tell me." Serena said, smiling. Darien looked at her.

"Why do I have to say it if you already know I do?" he asked, completely baffled by Serena's logic. It was no secret that he wanted her to stay the night with him. He didn't see what the problem was; she had already spent the night with him once, why would this night be any different? He wasn't going to let himself do anything she didn't want to, so why was she acting like this?

"I don't know, I just want to hear you admit it." Serena said, kissing him again. Darien knew she was working him for all he was worth, and he had to admit the way she was kissing him now made him want to do nothing else but stay the night with her. Serena pulled away from him, and got up off his lap.

"Let's go for a boat ride!" she said, as Mina hopped off Andrew as well. Darien shook his head and got up off the couch.

"Let me change first." He said, kissing Serena's forehead, and walking off trying to get his thoughts together. Darien went into his room, which happened to be scattered with Mina and Serena's things. He shook his head and proceeded to get dressed.

Once he got downstairs, the three of them were patiently waiting for him so they could get going.

"Let's go!" he said, grabbing a hold of Serena's waist and pulling her to his side. Andrew and Mina followed them out the back door and out onto the dock. Serena was in awe of the beauty of the place. She had never been somewhere so amazing. In her heart, she felt a slight pain, knowing that she was having the time of her life with another guy, somebody she shouldn't even be with. She looked up at Darien, who looked back down at her and smiled. The look in his eyes, put everything to rest, and she felt safe. She leaned up and kissed his lips before letting go of him and running down the dock to the boat house, a giggling Mina right behind her.

Darien watched the two blondes run down to the boat house and couldn't help but smile at their enthusiasm. He had never seen more energetic girls. He and Andrew walked at their own pace and got onto the dock where they worked on getting their boat ready. Serena and Mina sat in the boat, just waiting for the two men to be done. After lowering the boat into the water, Darien backed out of the dock and zoomed out into the open water. The other three were sitting in the front of the boat, just relaxing and laughing. Andrew was wrapped in Mina's arms while Serena simply lay there, with her eyes closed, feeling the wind against her skin.

"Serena," Darien called. She opened her eyes and looked over at him, smiling. "Come here, I'll teach you how to drive."

The young blonde leapt up and came to stand with Darien in the driver's seat. For the next twenty minutes he let her sit in his lap and let her drive the boat. It wasn't something that was too difficult, and he liked having her so close to him. Soon enough, they stopped the boat, and put it in park. Serena turned in his arms and put her legs over his lap, and curled up into his body.

"It is so gorgeous out here." Serena said, looking up at the stars. Darien kissed her forehead as they gazed at the stars together. Andrew and Mina were lying in the front of the boat just watching the sky. It was so peaceful out on the water, with the dark sky overhead. The four of them talked a bit as they relaxed on the boat, letting the waves rock them slowly back and forth. Darien was enjoying having Serena's body curled up into his; it made him feel strong, like he could protect her. The two were having their own little conversation, laughing and playing around.

"Darien! Stop!" Serena said, giggling as Darien's hands began wandering. Darien chuckled at her, and kissed her cheek.

"What? Why do you want me to stop?" Darien asked, chuckling as he continued to let his hands roam over her body. Serena wiggled and giggled as she grabbed his hands away from her ass.

"Stoooop!" Serena whined, as she curled further into Darien's body. She took his hands and put them back around her waist. She smiled up at Darien, who rolled his eyes at her, a broad grin on his face.

"You drive me crazy." He said, closing the space between their lips. Serena smiled as she pressed her soft lips against his. Serena let go of Darien's hands and put hers around his neck, pulling herself onto him even closer. She continued to kiss him, letting Darien take control of the pace. She felt his hands begin to wander again; one grabbed her ass, as the other lingered up her side. Serena giggled again as she kissed him one last time before pulling away from him.

"No, you can't do that out here!" Serena said. Darien couldn't help but laugh a bit as he moved his hands off her.

"Well then where do I get to do that?" he asked, kissing her soft lips again.

"I don't know, seeing as how I'm sharing a room with Mina tonight." Serena said, her voice trailing off. Darien rolled his eyes at her.

"I think you should share a room with me… I _want_ you to share a room with me." He said, looking into her eyes. She smiled at him, and kissed his lips.

"Good, because I want to share a room with you too." She said a sly grin on her face. Darien shook his head at her, and kissed her again. They stayed out on the water for the next half an hour, just watching the stars and letting the waves rock their boat. When Serena and Mina got too cold to continue being out on the water, Darien took them home. The girls got out as he docked the boat. He and Andrew made sure that it was properly secured and raised out of the water. Serena stood on the deck, leaning on a post, gazing out onto the water. Darien climbed out of the boat, and walked over to Serena.

"You ready to head up?" he asked, putting an arm around her waist.

"Mmhmm, it's just so calm out here, makes things feel less hectic, ya know?" Serena said, looking up at Darien with a smile on her face. He chuckled at her, as he led her up the deck and back towards the house. Andrew and Mina could be seen walking through the double doors back into the house. Darien knew that they were going to head straight to what normally was Andrew's room.

As Serena and Darien walked into the house, Darien separated himself from her and went around the bottom floor making sure all the doors were locked. Once he finished, he turned around and Serena was gone.

"Serena?" he called, looking through the bottom floor. He double checked the each room as he turned out the lights. Not finding her, he decided to just head straight upstairs into his room. He opened the door, and found Serena sitting on the couch in front of his king size bed. She sat with her legs up, watching an episode of Grey's Anatomy. He shook his head at her as he closed the door behind him, and walked towards her.

"Thanks for leaving me all alone down there." Darien said, throwing himself down onto the couch. Serena giggled, and let Darien take over the couch. He lay himself in between her legs and put his arms around her waist and set his head on her chest. Serena wrapped her legs around him.

"Comfy?" Serena asked, looking down at Darien, who simply nodded. "Well, good because, ya know, that's all I really care about." She said, sarcastically as Darien laughed. He looked up at her and kissed her lightly on the lips.

"I cannot believe that we're watching Grey's Anatomy." He said, looking straight into Serena's eyes as she giggled.

"What else would we do? Grey's is an awesome show!" Serena said, laughing. Darien got that sly look on his face as he leaned up to better take her lips with his. Serena allowed herself to be taken by his soft kisses. The position that he held on top of her body was making her feel like she wanted more. As the kissing continued, Darien began to restart the movements he had begun on the boat. Serena giggled as Darien's hands ran up her sides and towards her breasts. Serena pulled away, just as his fingertips reached her breasts.

"Am I not allowed to do this here, either?" Darien asked, as he began kissing down her neck. He knew what he was doing to her; Serena was putting her guard down. She giggled and moaned as he began sucking and nibbling on her neck.

"No, you're allowed to do anything here." Serena said, allowing him better access.

"Anything?" he questioned, looking up at her with a questionable face. Serena smirked and kissed his lips seductively. As she kissed him, she let her hands run down his chest, then slowly pulled away. She kissed him one last time, before sliding out from underneath his body.

"What are you doing?" Darien asked, looking up at her as she slid out from under him. Serena smiled, and took his hand. She led Darien to the other side of his bed and made him sit down. With one graceful movement, Serena had settled herself on his lap. Darien rubbed his hands up and down her back, then down her legs. Serena smiled and kissed his lips again, letting the intensity build up again.

Darien was entranced; he had never been so compelled by a woman before. It seemed as if every move she made only made him want her more. The pressure and warmth that her body put on his was making him crazy. The way she was working her tongue in his mouth, and the way her skin felt underneath his fingers was successfully turning him on. Serena began to tug at the shirt that Darien still had on. He let her hands slip under his shirt and remove it from his body. The feel of her fingers on his skin was doing something to him; he could feel that he was losing control over himself. Serena continued to kiss Darien in a seductive way, pressing her body against his. Darien's hands had a mind of their own, as they reached up and cupped her breasts, massaging and kneading them. He pulled away from Serena just so that he could remove her shirt. Serena bit down on her lower lip before she resumed her position on his lips. It was ridiculous how much this small girl turned him on, Darien was losing control of everything. In order to maintain his composure, he put his hands around Serena's waist and turned and lay her on his bed. Darien climbed on top of her, and took her lips with his again, softly. He pulled away from her and smiled, he needed to settle down and pull himself back together.

Serena leaned up and started kissing Darien's neck, letting her lips linger for a few seconds while nibbling a bit. Darien shut his eyes and let her work her magic. Serena began sucking a bit harder, and let her hands slide down his chest. With both hands, she pushed against his chest and flipped him over. Serena giggled as she climbed on top of him and continued kissing his neck. She continued kissing his neck and let her hands run down his chest, and towards his pants. Darien tensed up and grabbed Serena's hand before she could get a hold of anything. Serena groaned in frustration as Darien pulled her hand away. She separated herself from his neck and sat up, which didn't help Darien's situation.

"We can't do this." Darien said who couldn't keep his eyes off of Serena's body; her chest was only covered by a black lace bra, which made everything a lot sexier. He couldn't help himself, but he slid his hands up to her waist. Serena rolled her eyes at him and leaned back down and kissed him full on his lips. Darien kissed her back, letting her body cover his, but right before it got heavy, she slowly pulled away, and started kissing his neck again. She continued further up his neck and started nibbling on his ear. Darien immediately tensed up as Serena hit his spot over and over again. He couldn't believe the ways she managed to turn him on, he really couldn't let this continue if he wanted to control himself.

"Serena… really, this… can't keep going." Darien said, trying to form a coherent thought. Serena continued as if she hadn't heard him. Taking the matter into his own hands, Darien quickly flipped Serena over and pinned her down with his body.

"Dariennn!" Serena said laughing. Darien shook his head at Serena and kissed the base of her throat.

"We cannot let this get out of hand." Darien repeated, looking into her eyes. Serena smiled at him, with a look that said she wasn't actually going to consider his words. Darien saw the look in her eyes.

"I mean it." He added, before kissing her throat again, and continued to do so. As he kissed down her throat, his right hand continued traveling further down to her waist, where he hooked his fingers in the band of her shorts. With his other hand, he managed to undo her bra. He helped Serena take it off then threw it on the floor. Serena moaned as he continued kissing down her throat then to her right nipple, and took it into his mouth. Serena couldn't help herself, but she arched her back to let him have more access. Serena had the complete opposite reaction of Darien, she was eager to continue their evening whereas he wanted to stop it.

Darien was enjoying the sound of Serena moan because of him. She couldn't help herself; he was making her feel so good. He continued to caress her nipple with his mouth, running his tongue over it, lightly nibbling on it. Serena shut her eyes and let everything happen, not concerned with how right or wrong it was. In her mind it felt right, so right that she couldn't imagine it being any better. With his other hand, he continued to pull down her shorts, and explore further down. Serena was not planning on stopping him, she wanted him to continue. It had been so long for her that she didn't have the control that Darien had. Darien continued to move from one breast to the other, continually giving Serena the satisfaction she ached for.

Darien slyly slipped his right hand into her shorts, and past her lace thong as well, where he began to feel around for that specific spot he knew she wanted him to hit. Serena was waiting anxiously for him to reach her spot. She noticed that her body was reacting before she could even think about it, her legs spreading so that she could accept whatever Darien offered. He kissed back up her neck and found her lips. As he drew her attention back to her lips, he slipped a finger inside of her. Serena let out a moan into their kiss, which brought satisfaction to Darien; knowing that he was capable of making her feel this good. He slowly brought his finger in and out of her warmth, letting Serena feel all his movements. As the kissing went on, he picked up the pace and added another finger, which coaxed more moans from Serena's lips. Darien kissed down her neck and resumed his spot on her breasts, pleasuring each of them from one to the other. Serena was losing it, as Darien added a third finger to answer the needs she wanted to be met. Within the next three minutes, Serena was losing it as she reached her climax.

"I'm going to come… Darien… oh my god!" Serena panted as wave after wave of pure ecstasy flowed through her body. She gripped the sheets and arched her back so she could experience all the feelings. As she came down off her climax, she lay back down on his bed.

"Darien 2, Serena 0." He said quietly.

Serena looked up at him and set her determined look.

"I refuse to let the score remain uneven." Serena said, climbing on top of Darien and letting her bare chest rub against his. She leaned in and began whispering in his ear, saying things she knew he wanted to hear, wanted to do. Darien couldn't help but get turned on to what she was saying, it also didn't help that she was situated perfectly on his lap, and her breasts were pressing against his skin.

"Serena… No, you can't…" he said.

Darien shut his eyes and allowed Serena's voice to fill his head as he lost all concentration. She continued to whisper and nibble on his ears, as her hands caressed his chest. She kissed down his neck as her hands continued to go further down. She worked on his neck; just nibbling sucking and kissing him, making him feel more comfortable. Her hands reached his pants, and Darien flinched as her hand brushed over the bulge in his pants. Serena smiled to herself as he tensed up and continued to rub on his growing member. It had been so long since he had felt a woman touch him. Serena moved her hand to his waist band and moved her lips to Darien's. She continued to rub against Darien's member, feeling it grow beneath her fingers. She played with his waist band, never really going into it, but teasing him. And suddenly Serena was gone; she had crawled off the bed and had gotten up. Darien slowly opened his eyes and watched as the topless blonde turned off the television and flipped the light switch off. Darien smiled as she walked back towards the bed and lay back on top of him. Serena kissed his lips slowly and seductively, pressing her body against his.

"Mmmmm, I would have loved to see this with the lights on." Darien said as he caressed her cheek and brushed her blonde hair out of her face.

Serena giggled and kissed him again and let her hand wander down his chest. When she finally reached his waist band, Darien tensed as he finally felt her soft hand wrap around his member. He breathed in deeply as she began moving her hand up and down his shaft, with just the right amount of pressure. He groaned into the kiss he shared with Serena, and she couldn't help but smile. Serena continued to get Darien hard as she swept his mouth with her tongue. After a few minutes, Darien proceeded to flip Serena over and lay on top of her. His manhood pressed against the inside of her thigh, and she had never felt such a strong sexual urge.

Darien worked his magic on her neck as he kissed and caressed it, while his hands did different things. His hands traveled down to her waist band again, and this time pulled them down. Serena helped him remove her shorts and thong, and realized she was naked with him for the first time. Feeling a bit nervous, she brought his lips back to hers and kissed him. Darien kissed her lips as he removed his own shorts. At this point, Serena began to feel a bit more overwhelmed at their situation. She had never remembered anything that had felt this good, however she wondered if what they were doing was right. Tossing her thoughts aside, she allowed her body the pleasure that it had lacked for so long.

Darien couldn't help himself; the woman underneath him was driving him crazy. His lust for her was insatiable, and there was no stopping him now, he had to have her. The beast that was in Darien was eager to get out, but he knew better. He understood that Serena was more delicate than the others. He pressed himself against her inner thigh, feeling her warmth on his member; the sensation drove him wild. He continued to kiss her lips as his fingers slipped down to her warmth and slipped inside. The moan from her mouth reassured them both that this was what Serena wanted. Serena loved the feeling of Darien's fingers inside of her, but she wanted something more. Slowly, she began to spread her legs wider, hoping that Darien would take the hint. Once Serena had spread her legs wide enough, Darien settled his body between her legs, continuing his movements with his fingers.

Darien kissed Serena's lips softly, then slowly slipping his tongue into her mouth. Serena had never been kissed so sexually. As he ran his tongue against her own, she moaned as Darien's fingers began to get her closer and closer to her climax. Darien's lips left hers and continued down her law and to her neck, where he resumed the kissing and sucking. Serena was loving every moment of what was going on, but she knew her body wanted more. She let out another moan, before getting up her courage.

"Darien…" she moaned, "I want you." She said simply. Darien let out a low groan and kissed her on her lips.

"You don't know how good it feels to hear you say that." He said. Serena smiled at him as she kissed him.

Serena moaned into their kiss as Darien slipped his fingers out of her. Darien continued to kiss Serena as he situated himself to enter her. Darien pulled away from her lips and looked the blonde in the eye.

"Are you sure you want this?" he asked. As much as he wanted to have her, he didn't want to take advantage of the young blonde. Serena nodded her head, and kissed his lips again.

Darien needed no more convincing, as he slowly pushed himself inside her warmth. He slowly began entering, then pulling back out of her, not giving her all of him. Serena couldn't believe how big he felt inside of her, making her horny that there was still more to come. Darien had never felt a girl so tight around him, making him harder. He couldn't help himself as he began to thrust into her deeper, trying to feel her tight warmth along his entire length. Serena was loving every movement he made; Darien kept hitting the spots that made her want more. It had been so long since she had felt such pleasure.

Serena separated her lips from Darien's as she let out a moan as he thrust inside of her. Darien had picked up the pace, and groaned into Serena's neck as he kissed it. Serena couldn't stop moaning, the way that Darien was doing her was amazing. The feel of his dick deep inside of her was going to make her climax, and quickly. Darien was getting deeper and deeper inside of Serena, and he was losing it. He was loving the way her breasts bounced with every thrust he made, as they brushed against his chest. The sound of Serena's moans were driving him crazy. Darien let his hand wander down Serena's stomach to her hip. He smoothly grabbed a hold of her leg, and hooked it around his waist in one fluid movement. Serena moaned loudly as Darien entered her even deeper.

Serena had closed her eyes as her climax came closer and closer, as Darien's thrusts became faster and faster.

"Oh my god, Darien!" Serena panted as she felt a strong feeling stirring inside of her. Darien began thrusting harder as Serena neared her orgasm. He began sucking on her nipples, as she neared the edge.

"Oh god, I'm gonna cum!" Serena moaned. Darien smiled as he kissed back up to her neck, then to her ear.

"Come on baby, I want you to cum for me." He groaned into her ear.

Serena couldn't help it as Darien continued to give her what her body ached for. She let out a loud moan as she came over and over again. Darien groaned as her muscles contracted and squeezed him tighter. He slowed his pace down so Serena could regain composure. Darien kissed her skin from her neck to her shoulders. Serena breathed in deeply.

"Well now it's your turn." Serena said, looking at Darien. He looked at her with a puzzled look, as she pushed him over and onto his back.

Darien was surprised that Serena was taking things into her own hands so quickly. She climbed on top of him, and situated herself so that Darien could enter her again. Serena lowered herself onto him and moaned as she took him all in again. Darien groaned as she settled on him and began to move her hips. He watched as Serena leaned her body across his, which also put more pressure on him. Serena kissed his lips as she continued to move her hips up and down. Darien was in awe of this girl as he let his hands wander across her body. After a few minutes, Serena moved her body upright on top of him, allowing him to enter her deeper.

Darien groaned as she continued to move her body in ways that made him feel great. He loved the view he got as he watched her small body on top of him, and her breasts move with every move she made. Darien was losing it, the way she was doing him was like nothing before. Serena could tell Darien was nearing his point, and she was as well. Darien's hands were gripping her hips every time she came down on him, allowing him to grind deeper into her. Serena was moaning non-stop, letting him take more control of the actions.

"Oooh, Darien I'm going to cum again!" she moaned, arching her back, making Darien groan.

Serena was leaning forward on him, and was letting him control the pace entirely, as he brought her hips up and down. Within seconds she was coming all over him again, moaning his name the entire time. Watching her as she reached her climax got Darien even harder as he flipped her over so he could better control the movements. At this point, Darien could only focus on his growing need to get off. He thrust into her deeper, as she continued to do all she could to get his climax. Serena wrapped both of her legs around his waist and brought him even deeper inside of her. Darien groaned as he entered her again and again. The way that Darien was entering Serena, got her moaning again. Serena had never been fucked like this, she was going to cum again, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

"Darien! Please, don't stop!" she moaned, wrapping her legs around him tighter as she came for the third time.

Darien groaned as he felt her contract around him again. He had never felt something so tight before. It was getting too hard for him to control himself, he needed to release. Finally, Darien let out a loud groan as he thrust deep inside of Serena, releasing inside of her. With every contraction, he thrust back into her. After a bit, he pulled out of her, and lay next to her on his bed.

"That was amazing." Serena said, turning to face him, smiling. Darien smiled at her and kissed her.

"I hope you're not tired, because I told you, I'm evening out the score tonight." She said, a wicked smile on her face.

Darien laughed as he looked at her, "Are you sure you want that?" Darien asked, climbing back on top of her and kissing her neck again.

Serena giggled and kissed Darien, starting everything all over again.

**A/N: I hope you liked it! If you did or you didn't, I would love to hear your comments! Reviews are always welcomed!!**

~ladytruth


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Hey guys, sorry about such a long wait! This chapter is probably one of my favorites, it's showing Darien in a good light this time! Well I hope you guys enjoy!

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Chapter 14

Serena woke up in the morning feeling incredibly relaxed. Darien was asleep next to her, his arms wrapped around her waist, his body curling around hers. She smiled and closed her eyes again, savoring the warmth.

"Good morning," a deep voice said from behind Serena. She giggled as she turned around to face Darien, who had just opened his eyes.

"Good morning." She replied, before planting a small kiss on his lips, to which he responded by kissing her back. He put his arms around her and pulled her close to his body as he rolled onto his back. Serena placed her head on his chest and draped an arm over his stomach.

"How'd you sleep?" Darien asked, running his fingers up and down her back. He loved the way her skin felt against his.

"Mmm, wonderfully," Serena answered. She stretched her body out then curled back into Darien.

"Good," he replied, as he turned over and picked up his watch on the bedside table. Looking at it, he sat straight up in disbelief of the time.

"Serena, we've got to go. It's almost 11, the meeting is at 1, we need to get back to the house. Now." He said, throwing the blankets aside and hopping out of bed, looking around for his clothing. Serena jumped out of bed, and looked for her clothing around the floor. Darien threw on his boxers then stopped for a few seconds to watch as Serena walked around his room naked, picking up pieces of clothing and covering herself up with them. Darien chuckled as she looked up to see him staring at her as she slipped into her black panties.

"What are you looking at?" Serena said, fastening her bra around her back. Darien smiled and walked over to her and put his arms around her waist and kissed her lips again. He let his hands cup her butt and pulled her closer to him. Serena was on her tiptoes as she kissed him. Finally, Darien pulled away from her, and brushed the hair out of her eyes. He smiled that grin he had and kissed her lightly again.

"I like it when you're naked." He smirked as Serena rolled her eyes at him. She turned away from him and continued to pack up her bag and get her clothes together. Darien put his basketball shorts on and put his own things together. Within ten minutes they were both ready to get out of the room. Darien was holding both of their bags as they walked out of the bedroom. Serena shut the door behind her and smiled at Darien and kissed his cheek.

"I had a great time in that bedroom," she said, walking away from him with that innocent smile on her face. Darien grinned and followed her downstairs where Mina and Andrew were already waiting. The two of them were at the table, talking and eating, their bags packed and off to the side.

"About time you two got up, I've never seen you get up this late before." Andrew said.

"Yea, what did you two do last night?" Mina asked giggling, as Andrew laughed as well.

"Nothing," Serena answered, sitting down next to Mina. Andrew laughed again, looking at her. Darien raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he put the bags down but remained standing, to show his urgency.

"We need to get going; the meeting is going to start in an less than two hours." Darien said, looking from one person to the other. Mina rolled her eyes and got up, while Andrew nodded and began putting his dishes away. Serena grabbed an apple, and stood back up, not really expecting anything less than that sentence to show his seriousness.

"Darien you're such a stiff. You don't always have to be half an hour early." Mina said, putting her clean dishes away and taking Andrew's.

"If you'd like Mina, we can leave you here." He replied sarcastically, as he picked up his and Serena's bags and walked out the front door.

"Nice, baby." Andrew said, kissing her neck as he slipped his arms around her waist. "He has his ways, we don't question him." He said as he continued to kiss her neck, and run his fingers under her shirt.

Mina turned around and kissed his lips, closing her eyes and pressing her body against his. She couldn't seem to get enough of the way Andrew held her. He was slowly kissing her, letting his lips part hers as his tongue lightly traced her lips. Mina felt tingles go down her spine as Andrew continued to caress the skin under her shirt. He slowly pushed her against the counter so he could push against her harder. Mina clung to his body as she deepened the kiss. Andrew took his hands out of her shirt and placed them on the back of her legs and lifted her up and onto the counter, wrapping her legs around him. The two of them were getting so wrapped up in each other, Andrew couldn't stop pushing himself against her, and caressing her breasts from underneath her shirt. Mina moaned into his kiss and slipped her hands underneath his shirt as well, running her fingers along the waistband of his shorts. All of a sudden, she heard a voice in the background.

"Glad to see you guys are getting ready." Darien said, who was leaning against the wall looking at the two.

Andrew groaned in frustration as he pulled his lips away from Mina's, and took his hands out of her shirt. He slowly turned around and faced his best friend.

"You know, Darien, you should lighten up a bit." Andrew said, as Mina wrapped her arms and legs around him from behind.

"Hey, you know how big these meetings are. We have to be on time. Let's go!" he replied, as Serena walked up to him. "Ready?" he asked her.

"Yea, what's going on?" she said, looking from Darien to Andrew.

"Nothing, let's go." Andrew said, turning back to Mina and kissing her one last time. She sighed and got down off the counter and followed Andrew. Serena shrugged and walked out after them, followed by Darien.

The four of them enjoyed the ride back to the main house, where each of them split off and took showers and prepared for their meeting. Serena had put the finishing touches on her make up when she heard a knock on her door.

"Come in!" she said as she reapplied mascara to her long eyelashes. Darien walked into the room and stood there waiting. Serena finished and turned towards him, smiling. The man standing in front of her exuded power and strength; his tall frame was neatly dressed in a suit; she couldn't help but be intimidated by him.

"Ready?" he asked, trying to read her expression. She was nicely dressed in a blouse and skirt, she looked so proper that he couldn't believe that this was the same girl who he had taken to bed less than 12 hours ago. The fact that she was so properly dressed made him want to take her again; there was something about her that was turning him on.

"Yea… what are you looking at? Darien?" Serena asked, walking up to him and looking him in the eyes. He didn't even reply, but just took her lips with his. Serena was kind of thrown off, but she was quickly melting into his arms, letting his tongue caress hers. She giggled a bit as she pulled away from him.

"What was that for?" she asked, smiling up at him. Darien shrugged his shoulders and smirked at her, as he took her hand and led her out of the room.

"Ready?" Andrew asked, as the two came down the steps.

"Yea, let's go." Darien replied as they all headed out to the car, and zoomed off to the meeting, which lasted a total of two hours.

Serena was waiting for Darien as he packed up his briefcase. She walked over to him, slid her arms around his waist, and looked up at him as she grinned.

"What do you say we get out of here and have fun at the house?" She suggested, giving him a mischievous look. Serena couldn't help herself, throughout the meeting, she couldn't help but feel turned on by his power and masculinity. Darien had that half-grin on his face as he looked down at the blonde beauty, which also allowed him to take a peek down her blouse. He smiled as he took a finger and quickly ran it over the top button and made it pop open.

"Darien!" Serena squealed, as he laughed to himself, watching her cheeks turn red as she struggled to button it back up. "Don't do that here." She said, walking away from him.

Darien caught up with her and put his hands around her waist as he put his lips to her ear, "I couldn't help it, I just can't keep my hands off you." He said in his deep voice, which set her body on fire. He kissed her neck as he slid his hands up to her breasts and gave them both a squeeze.

Serena turned in his arms, trying to get a little pay back and slid her hands under his suit jacket. She grabbed the belt loops in his pants and pulled his lower body against hers, and pressed hard up against him.

"Let's go back." Serena said, looking up into his eyes as she continued to press and move herself against him. She slid a hand down and rubbed his package, grinning. Darien shuddered at the obvious contact.

"Andrew is getting impatient, he's watching us…" Darien said as he saw him peek his head back into the conference room. He put his hands on her hips and turned her around as he allowed a hand to graze her own lower section, which elicited a moan from the young girl.

Darien chuckled as they walked out; both he and Serena were a little flustered as they exited the room towards the elevator where Andrew was waiting.

"What took you two so long?" he asked as they entered the elevator, obviously hinting at the flirtatious touching that had been going on.

"Nothing, just getting some things ready for later." Darien said, smirking at Serena and putting his arms around her. He pulled her close to his body, wanting her to feel his predicament. Serena looked back at him, grinned and with the hand that Andrew couldn't see, she began inching up his leg, until she found what she was looking for and gave a light squeeze.

Darien jolted, feeling all the blood rush to his lower half at the touch of her hand. He didn't think it was possible for a girl to turn him on this much.

Andrew looked over at Darien, saw the look on his face and grinned as he raised an eyebrow. He couldn't wait to get off the elevator with these two. Finally, the elevator came to a stop and Andrew exited first. Darien took the time to quickly caress Serena's neck with a long kiss as he simultaneously massaged her breasts. He felt her body weaken at his touch, and just as quickly as he started, he released her.

Serena opened her eyes to see Darien walking out of the lobby throwing a smirk back her way. She cursed him under her breath, and attempted to catch up with him, but simply met him at the car, and climbed in.

"I can't wait to relax at home." Andrew said, starting up conversation, he noticed it had gotten a little too quiet for a group of 3 people; 2 of whom were very much sexually frustrated. He laughed to himself as he thought of a way to make this little game of theirs more fun for him.

"So, Mina and I thought it would be fun if the four of us went into the city and did some shopping, just spend the day outside of the house." Andrew said, watching Darien's expression tighten.

"That sounds good, I mean we could go in a couple of hours, right?" Darien asked, looking back at Serena and imagining the things he wanted to do with her. Andrew's rather annoying voice filtered into his head again, disturbing his train of thought.

"No, but its already after 3, by the time we get home and get dressed it'll be 4 already. I say we should just head out when we're all ready." He said, watching the tormented look in his eyes; his face however, remained calm.

Much to Darien's surprise, Serena perked up, "Yea, I think it's a great idea! I need to get a little shopping done. What do you say we try and leave around 4?" Serena said, looking directly into Darien's eyes. Serena's eyes couldn't hide the smile she was trying not to show. Darien looked at her then broke down, sighing.

"Alright, I'll be ready. But you guys know how I feel about shopping, this cannot be an all night affair, other things are more pressing." He said, looking Serena in the eyes as she suppressed a giggle and looked away from him.

They pulled up to the house and Serena rushed inside, trying to escape from Darien, whom she knew wasn't at all excited about the day trip. She called out Mina's name as she entered the house.

"MINA! MINA! Hurry up and get ready, we're going shopping!" Serena said once she had found her blonde twin sitting on the back porch. Mina squealed and hopped up, heading back into the house after Serena. She saw Andrew and rushed to hug him and give him a quick kiss.

"I'm so excited for shopping!" Mina squealed, as she ran up the stairs into the room trying to get dressed.

Serena had just walked into her room and was busy removing her business attire and hanging up piece by piece. She removed her blouse and decided it needed to go in the wash as she threw it in the hamper. A knock came to her door, and she knew who it was.

"Come in." she said, using her most innocent voice as Darien walked in. He had shed his suit jacket, had his tie and the top few buttons undone. Serena could easily see the well-defined muscular chest and knew what he was doing. However, it also back fired on him; she was still in her skirt, but was simply wearing a red lace bra, no top.

"How badly do you want to shop?" he asked Serena, walking closer to her after he shut the door.

"Maybe not as badly as you do," she replied, hinting at his obvious intentions. Darien chuckled at her as he brought his lips down to hers, softly caressing them in such a way that Serena doubted she ever wanted it to stop. He continued kissing down her jaw and shoulders, and then settled into her neck for a little bit.

Darien could hear the moans escape from her mouth and was enjoying the sound she made. He continued working at her neck, sucking, nibbling and biting. His hands were roaming all over her body but finally landed on her bra, which he successfully unhooked.

He slid the straps down, removing the bra in general. Darien allowed his hands to run up and down her sides then began caressing her breasts. He knew what he was doing to her, the way she moaned and pressed her body against him was a dead giveaway. He grinned to himself as he slowly pulled away from her.

"You better get dressed, we're going shopping soon." He said looking her in the eye as her expression changed from pleasure, to confusion to irritation.

"OH! You are terrible! Get out!" she said, covering herself up as he laughed at the blonde who pushed him out of her room. As he walked to the doorway, he smiled and bent down and kissed her quickly.

"Feisty today, huh?" he smirked. He knew he was getting under her skin. Serena rolled her eyes at him.

"Don't worry, we'll see who wins at the end of the day." She said, and with that, she closed the door in his face.

Darien couldn't help but chuckle at Serena, he wasn't sure what she was going to come up with, but he knew her body, he knew what he could do to her. He went to his room and got dressed for shopping, an activity he really hated. He decided it would be best if he wore jeans, thinking that the thick fabric would most likely come in handy during this shopping trip. He left his room and walked to Serena's room, where he could hear her on the phone. Not wanting to interrupt, he began walking away from the door when he heard her laugh a bit.

"The trip has been absolutely amazing, I couldn't have imagined it any better… um, yea, of course, yea of course I miss you Malcolm."

At the last few words she spoke, Darien's expression went blank. He continued walking faster down the hallway, trying to get away. How could he have forgotten about Malcolm? Darien walked down the steps and saw Andrew and Mina sitting on the couch watching tv.

"Hey man, you ready?" Andrew called over to him. Darien stayed silent; he was so angry that Malcolm was still on her mind, angry that she missed him. What could it be that she missed? Wasn't he just as much of a man, or more so, than he? Andrew cut into his thoughts again.

"Darien? Where's Serena?" Andrew asked. Darien shrugged his shoulders and sat at the kitchen bar, waiting for her to come downstairs. Within a few seconds, the small blonde hopped down the stairs smiling, and once she saw him, made a straight line to Darien. He watched her walk towards him, blue eyes sparkling, and her hips swaying. She was wearing a strapless blue summer dress that hugged her figure delicately. Once she finally got to Darien, she weaved her way in between his legs and kissed him.

Darien couldn't remember why he had been upset just a few seconds ago, everything seemed to be right when she was there with him, kissing him. Hadn't she stuttered when she said she missed Malcolm? Hadn't she also said that the trip was amazing, and couldn't have been any better? As Darien thought back on her words, he pulled her closer to him. Serena was sure to be his, or else she wouldn't be risking her "relationship" with Malcolm. Obviously she had made her choice.

Serena pulled away from him and smiled. "Get ready for the best day of shopping you'll ever have."

"Excited already." Darien replied, hinting at the little game they were playing. She giggled and took his hand and pulled him out of the seat.

"Time to go! Come on!" she said, happily dragging everybody out of the house and to Darien's car. The four of them drove to the mall that was closest to them, and got out. Mina was bursting with excitement, practically dragging Andrew behind her as she rushed to the entrance, allowing Darien and Serena some space between the two couples.

"So," Darien began as he put his arms around Serena's waist and walking towards the mall. "what exactly do you need in the mall?" he said as he planted little kisses up and down her neck and shoulders, successfully turning her on.

"Oh, you'll see. It'll probably come in handy later on today." She said, savoring the feeling of Darien's arms wrapped around her. Knowing that she was getting sucked into him, she broke away from his hold, took his hand and led him into the mall with her.

Darien and Serena went on without finding the other two. Serena knew exactly what she was looking for, and once she saw it, smiled at Darien, and pulled him behind her. As soon as he realized where they were going, he groaned, he knew this would be hard for him.

"Serena, really? Victoria's Secret?" he asked, knowing this was part of her plan. She smiled innocently and dragged him inside. The walls were filled with bright colored bras and panties of all kinds, lace and silk teddies and even stockings. Serena began leading Darien around the store, picking up all kinds of sexy lingerie, holding pieces up for him to picture her in. Once they had gone through the entire store, Serena dragged him to the fitting room. After she tried on an item, she would walk out and show him if she didn't want to keep it. Watching Serena walk out in various sexy outfits was sufficiently turning him on.

"Darien what about this one?" she asked, opening the dressing room door and letting him in. Once he entered, she shut the door behind him. Serena was dressed in a blue lace teddy that left very little to the imagination. Serena smiled and closed the distance between them, and kissed his lips as her hands found the slight bulge in his pants. Darien groaned a bit and pulled away from her lips.

"Not here." He said simply, taking half a step back. Serena eyed him mischievously.

"Why not here?" she asked, taking a full step towards him and letting her hands return to the growing bulge in his pants. She pressed her hand against the fabric, as Darien took another half step back from her.

"Serena, put some clothes on, let's get out of here, now." He said.

Serena stepped closer to him still and kissed him again, letting her tongue run across his. Darien couldn't help but pull her body closer to his, showing her how much he wanted her, needed her. He lifted the fabric up from her thigh and exposed her own lace panties. Darien's hands worked their magic as they found their way inside her panties, then inside of her.

As soon as she felt his fingers enter her, Serena had to pull away. She was so fired up at this point that she would have gone for it in the dressing room, but thought against it. Darien pulled away, and grinned.

"Let's go, please. I need to get you back home." Darien said as she giggled at him. She quickly shooed him out of the dressing room as she selected two of the teddies that she had picked out. Serena quickly changed into her dress as Darien called Mina to tell them to meet them at the car.

Serena was at the cash register, getting her items rung up. Darien wasn't allowed to see the two items she had gotten. The saleswoman wrapped them in tissue paper and placed them in a bright pink bag.

"That'll be $118.87." the woman said. As Serena pulled out her credit card, a different hand extended beyond hers and handed the saleswoman a card. Serena turned to see Darien calmly standing next to her.

"What are you doing? You don't have to pay for this, I can handle it." Serena said, looking up at him.

Darien grinned at her, "I know you can, but I want to take care of this. I mean, I'm the one who's really getting something out of this. Go ahead and charge it." He said looking at the saleswoman, who smiled and swiped the card, then handed it back to him.

"Darien…" Serena protested, looking up at him. He shook his head, as he signed for it. The woman smiled at the two and handed Serena the bag.

"You two have a great day."

"Thanks, you too." Serena said, as she walked out of the store with Darien. Once they got out she turned to him, and Darien had sensed she was going to say something.

"Listen, I wanted to pay for this, I will continue to pay for things. What's the point of having all the money and not spending it on things that actually matter?" he said, looking Serena in the eyes. She sighed, and then smiled at him.

"Thank you, I promise you'll love them." She said, smiling even brighter as she pressed her body against him, and kissing him quickly. Serena giggled as she felt his bulge against her thigh.

"Let's go back to the house." She said, taking his hand and walking towards the parking lot. Darien eagerly followed her, knowing that the day was only going to get better. They walked hand in hand out to the parking lot and found Mina and Andrew waiting at the car, arms wrapped around each other. Serena laughed as she saw three huge bags full of Mina's shopping.

"Got everything you needed?" Serena asked. Mina smiled in delight and shook her head vigorously.

"Yup! It was a successful trip. Oooh, what did you get?" she asked with a naughty smile on her face, looking at the Victoria's Secret bag.

"Just a couple of things I needed." She said, her cheeks turning a light pink. Darien grinned at how embarrassed she was at the talk of her bag, which struck him as strange since she had been quite bold all day.

"Well, let's head out." Darien said, unlocking the doors to the car, and letting everybody in. Serena smiled and quickly climbed into the car; incredibly eager to start what she knew would be a very successful night.

* * *

So there you go! Chapter 14 is all done! I thought about continuing it into the night, but I knew that it'd make the chapter too long. PLUS I wanted to really get some good action in it, and so I've dedicated some time for the two to finally be with each other again.

Reviews would be great! Promise I won't keep Chapter 15 on hold for so long!

Thankkkks :)


	15. Chapter 15

-Chapter 15

The two couples emerged from the car and instead of being at home like Darien wished; they were pulling up to a restaurant. Andrew and Mina had convinced them that a night out would do them all some good. Coming around her side of the car, Serena smiled sweetly at Darien and slid her arm around his waist. He breathed in deeply and put an arm around her shoulders and walked her towards the doors.

Once they were inside, they were greeted by a young man who took them to their cozy little booth. Mina and Andrew sat on one side, cuddled together, while Darien and Serena sat on the other side. Serena was curled up into Darien's chest, resting her head in between his neck and shoulder, eyes shut and breathing in his intoxicating scent. The restaurant was small, but elegant; it had a very sultry atmosphere with dimmed lights and relaxing music. Darien wrapped his arms around Serena's body and pulled her closer.

After a minute or two of comfortable silence, a young man came to their table and greeted them all. Serena separated herself from Darien and sat up so she could listen to the man introduce himself. For a split second, Darien hated this man for making Serena move from her spot.

"Hello ladies and gentlemen, I'm Christian and I will be serving you today. May I start you off with some beverages?" he asked, turning to look at Serena. "Miss, what would you like?" he said, flashing a smile.

Serena looked at Darien, then replied sweetly, "I'd like a glass of red wine please, nothing too dry, just a good Merlot." She said, smiling. He nodded at her then turned to Mina, and repeated his question, flashing another big smile.

"I'd like the same, wine sounds great." Mina said, grinning at Serena.

"And for you two gentlemen?" he asked. Darien remained calm, and looked over at Andrew.

"We'll have the same as the ladies, thank you." Andrew replied, politely smiling at the waiter, who nodded.

"I'll be right back with your wine." He said, smiling again and turning away.

As soon as the waiter was gone, Darien rolled his eyes and scoffed. He wasn't too happy about the waiter and his overly friendly attitude towards Serena, who was trying hard not to smile at how jealous Darien was.

Serena sat up a little bit and let her left hand wander underneath the table, and settled on Darien's leg. She slowly slid her hand up his leg and she felt him tense up as she found what she was looking for. Serena turned to face Darien, who had a strange look on his face. She giggled and kissed him, pressing harder against him. Darien slid his arm around her waist and slowly began lifting the fabric of her dress up her thigh. Serena pulled away from him, smiled and kissed him once more.

"I can't wait for after dinner." She said, looking him in the eye, and completely distracting him from what his previous thoughts were. Serena grabbed at him again, and watched his face tense up. She smirked and kissed him again.

"You really are trying to drive me crazy, aren't you?" he asked, resuming his motions and getting up underneath her dress, spreading her legs so he could get to where he knew she'd like it. She squirmed a bit when he reached her clit, rubbing it from the outside of her thong. She moaned a bit as she pushed herself against his fingers. His fingers worked their magic, finding her little nub and coaxing a few more moans out of her. Getting worked up, Serena finally pulled herself together and pulled away from him.

"No, that's not fair." Serena said, looking back up into his eyes.

"Oh, so then what were you doing to me?" he asked. Serena giggled and kissed him again, leaving her lips on his long enough for him to push harder against her, so that he could better taste her lips. Darien's hands traveled lower and back underneath her dress. Serena's small hand grabbed his wrist and pulled it away. Serena pulled away, nibbling on his lower lip, and smiling.

"We need to stop, or else dinner will be unbearable." Serena said, running her hands up and down his chest, and to his abs.

"It's already unbearable; I've never been so frustrated." He said, pulling her towards his body firmly. Serena leaned in to kiss him again when they were interrupted by the waiter bringing their wine.

"Here you are," he said, placing the glasses down in front of each of them. "Are you ready to order?" he asked, looking from Darien's frustrated face to Serena's red cheeked face.

Andrew smiled at the waiter and politely answered him, ordering for himself and Mina as she curled into his body. Once the waiter was finished with their order, he turned to Serena and smiled.

"And for you miss? Have you decided what you like?" he asked, looking her in the eyes, giving her a smile.

Darien cleared his throat, getting the waiter's eyes off of Serena. "She would like the coq au vin with sautéed vegetables and roasted potatoes. I'd like the grilled chicken with the same entrées." He said, looking the waiter in the eye.

"Excellent." He said, taking their order, "I will be back soon with your meals, if there is anything else you need, feel free to ask me." He said graciously, and turned away from the table.

Darien's face was expressionless, but it was apparent in the way he had spoken to the waiter that he was annoyed. Serena giggled and pressed her lips against his neck, putting her arms around his waist and pulling closer into his body.

"Thanks for ordering for me," Serena said, tracing her finger up and down his chest, then slipping underneath his t-shirt to trace the skin above his jeans. "It's sexy knowing that you know what I like." She said, kissing his neck again. Darien chuckled as he wrapped his arms around Serena's body, pulling her close.

"Well let's go home and we can figure out what else you like." He said, looking down at her with that half grin on his face. Serena smiled as Darien ran his hands up and down her back.

After a while, the food came to their table and the four of them had a great dinner, talking and laughing amongst themselves. It was interesting to watch the party of four interact because you could tell that they were all very good friends, but there was also a various amount of hidden touches that were snuck during dinner. Serena was an expert and Darien was just as skilled as she was. Both of them were increasingly frustrated at their predicament. It got to a point where Darien had to excuse himself so he could calm down outside and get away from Serena's lingering hands.

As he stood outside in the cool night air, he laughed a little. He had never been so sexually frustrated. Usually he was a very collected man; he would never get this aroused, even when other women had coaxed him. He was human, so of course he would get turned on, but what Serena was doing, that was something entirely new to him. Every time she touched him something inside of him burned alive. He had to stop thinking about the way she touched him, he had to get it off his mind, at least for the few seconds he was away from it. Darien breathed in deeply and exhaled, relaxing his body, which seemed to work. After another minute or two, he re-entered the restaurant to find the waiter back at their table, chatting it up with Serena, who was smiling back up at him.

As soon as he walked over to them, Serena smiled brighter, "Oh, here he is! Darien, did you want any dessert?" she asked, as he slid back in the booth with her.

"No, I'm fine, you're enough dessert for me." He said, kissing her lips. Serena smiled at him.

"Yea, no dessert for me either. Mina? Andrew? Are you guys getting dessert? Or are we ready to finally get back to the house?" Serena asked, looking eagerly from one to the other.

"I think we're ready to have the check please." Andrew said to the waiter, who seemed slightly annoyed, but he nodded and left the four of them to talk.

"So what do you guys want to do when we get back? Movie together?" Andrew asked a glint in his eye. Darien groaned.

"No! No more group bonding, once we get home, I want Serena all to myself. Just the two of us. Alone. Okay?" Darien said, looking at Andrew and Mina who couldn't help but laugh at his outburst.

"Darien, we get it, we're just messing with you." Mina said, giggling a bit.

Darien pulled Serena's body closer to his and kissed her forehead as they waited for the waiter to bring the check. Once it came, Darien gladly paid for their meal, using his company credit card; although that didn't really mean much since he was the boss. Instead of generously tipping like he usually did, he only gave the suggested amount. It served the waiter right if he was going to hit on Serena while he was there.

The car ride back to the house wasn't a long one. All four of the people in the car sat in a comfortable silence, relaxing and enjoying their time together. In no time at all, they were all getting out of the car, Serena in Darien's arms and Mina in Andrew's; both girls had their shopping bags as well.

"Welcome back." Darien said, as he unlocked the door to the house, letting everybody in. Serena sighed and turned to Darien, looking up at him.

"Come to my room in about ten minutes, okay?" she said, leaning up and kissing his cheek.

"Sure." He replied, watching Serena's body move from side to side as she walked away from him. Darien eyed the Victoria's Secret bag and couldn't wait to see what she had gotten.

Serena was in her room getting changed, she was excited about her night, and god could she use the sex, she was so fired up! It had been unbearable being with Darien all day as he touched and kissed her in the ways that made her weak. As she was getting ready, a knock came to her door.

"Come in!" she replied as she focused on herself in the mirror. Darien walked into her room; he had gotten rid of the jeans and was now in a pair of athletic shorts and a regular white t-shirt.

"What are you doing?" Darien asked as he inspected the outfit that she wore. For a second he was confused; Serena was not at all dressed in the way he had anticipated. Instead, she was in a short pair of athletic shorts and a purple tank top. Underneath the tank top it seemed as if she were wearing a bathing suit.

"How do you feel about a night swim?" Serena asked, walking up to Darien and putting her arms around his waist and settling her body in between his legs.

"Swimming? You want to go swimming?" Darien asked, completely thrown off by her question. Did she not realize that he had crossed a line and that he would not be able to do anything until his need was fulfilled?

"Yea, swimming. We can also do other things on the private beach, can't we?" she asked, looking Darien in the eyes, who finally seemed to understand where she was going with her suggestion.

"Anything you want." He said, pulling her body further onto his. Serena giggled and pulled away from him as smoothly as she could. She took his hand, grabbed a towel and walked out of her room.

"Go get your bathing suit on, and I'll wait downstairs for you." Serena said, smiling at him and running down the stairs. Darien went back into his room and changed as quickly as he could. The whole day had been incredibly frustrating and he needed to relieve himself as soon as he could; he couldn't think of anything else. He finished getting dressed then left his room to find Serena downstairs. As he walked into the living room, he found Serena curled up on the couch, watching tv.

"You ready?" Darien asked, leaning over the back of the couch, looking down at her. She smiled and got up.

"Yea, let's go." Serena said, grabbing the towel and joining Darien. The couple walked out onto the porch and out onto the sand. Darien took Serena's hand and led her down to the water. As they continued to walk, the lights from the house began to fade in the distance. Finally, Darien stopped at the point where they could see the waves crashing in, but weren't close enough so that they would get wet. Serena lay out the towel and sat down, patting the spot next to her so that he would sit down as well. Darien sat down behind her, and pulled her towards him so that she was sitting in between his legs.

The night was very warm, but not so warm that they were uncomfortable. The breeze coming off the water sent chills down Serena's spine as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the sound of the waves crashing against the shore, and the feel of Darien's arms wrapped around her. She found his hands and laced her fingers in between his, then pulled his arms around her tighter. She couldn't have imagined this feeling any better.

Darien began kissing her neck, letting his lips stay on her skin just long enough. His hands slid out from hers and began rubbing her legs, where he traced small circles up her inner thigh. Serena couldn't take it as she turned to face him, gently pushing him onto his back and climbed on top of him, taking his lips with hers. She felt Darien's hands wrap around her and pull her down to his body even harder as he ravaged her lips, entering her mouth with his tongue. As they explored each other's mouths, Darien lifted Serena's tank top from her body, briefly parting from her lips so that the piece of clothing could come off. Serena moaned as his large hands began to knead at her breasts, untying the top and throwing it to the side. Serena pulled away from his lips and sat up on him, slowly moving her hips in a circle, grinding on Darien. He didn't need the extra friction; he was already hard against her. Serena reached down and took the shirt off his body, and threw it onto the pile of clothes around them.

Serena laid her body back on top of Darien's, letting her breasts rub against his skin as she kissed him again. Darien's hands roamed down to her hips and settled on the waistband of her shorts, and began pulling them down. He couldn't keep waiting, he had to have her. Once her shorts were off, he untied the strings to her bottoms and let them join the other clothes. Serena pulled away from his lips, smiling.

"Your shorts have to come off too… now." she said, tugging at the strings that held them onto his body. Darien couldn't remove them faster, as Serena remained on top of him. Once his shorts were off, Serena began kissing Darien's neck as her hand found his throbbing member. Once her hand touched him, he thrust himself towards her, portraying his need for satisfaction. Serena giggled as she rubbed the tip against her already wet entrance, eager for him to be inside her once more. Slowly, she pushed herself onto his dick, moaning as it spread her walls. While on top, she wiggled her body around so that she could fit all of him inside her, finally sitting up straight on him.

Darien had never felt anything better than this as Serena began to move up and down on him, letting out moans as she hit her spots. For a couple of minutes, Serena worked her magic on top of Darien, making him groan as she did him right. His hands found her breasts as she rode him, giving him a great visual of her body on his. As good as it felt moving to her own rhythm, Serena wanted nothing more than for Darien to take over the pace. There was something sexy about him taking charge, taking what he wanted. She was fairly certain that they were both experiencing a pure primal need to simply get off as quickly as possible. At the thought of Darien taking her for what she was worth, she let out a loud moan.

"Oh my god Darien, I'm cumming… oh god!" she screamed as convulsion after convulsion swept over her body, releasing what seemed like days worth of sexual frustration. Darien thrust upwards into her harder, making her moan louder. Serena was shaking; her body had been unprepared for such an orgasm. At this point, she wanted nothing more than for Darien to also get off. Serena leaned forward, as Darien wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Fuck me." She whispered into his ear, not knowing what else to say. "Darien please… fuck me." Serena couldn't help it; she wanted to feel his power, his strength, and his masculinity. She wanted him to have her the way he wanted, to release his frustration.

Darien was slightly caught off guard by her wording, but nevertheless began thrusting into the woman on top of him. Serena buried her face in his neck, moaning loudly with every thrust he made, only driving him to go quicker. His thrusts were much faster than Serena's, much more urgent. Serena closed her eyes as Darien went at it, giving it to her the way she wanted it, she couldn't help it as he coaxed another orgasm out of her. She screamed his name, holding onto him as she reached her climax again.

"Oh god Darien! Yes! Yes! I'm cumming again!" she said as she arched her back and released on top of him for the second time. Darien groaned as he felt her walls squeeze his member, almost making him release. He was nearing his orgasm, and could feel all the pent up sexual energy culminate right at this moment. There was nothing that could have stopped him from thrusting into the girl on top of him.

"Serena, I'm going to bust, damn you feel so good!" he groaned as he thrust into her faster and deeper. Darien could feel his release getting closer and closer, and he did everything he could to obtain it. Serena couldn't stop moaning as she held on at his mercy. Darien was frantic as Serena screamed his name again and again. Finally, he reached his release.

"Oh god Serena! Yes! Damn it, that's amazing!" he said as he thrust inside of her, releasing at the same time. He groaned as Serena squeezed her walls around him tighter as she came again, heightening his orgasm. It was as if nothing else mattered, just their two bodies coming together.

As he slowly came down, Serena kissed his neck to his shoulders, then back up again, finally kissing his lips. She climbed off of him and lay on the towel beside him. Her heart was still racing, she hadn't caught her breath and her legs were trembling. She looked over at Darien, whose eyes were shut, breathing in deeply, sweat covering his forehead.

The two of them caught their breath in a comfortable silence, not needing to say much after the orgasms they had both experienced. After about ten minutes, Serena stood on her weak legs, and took Darien's hands.

"Let's wash off." She said as Darien got to his feet. Serena took his hand, and walked into the water, and turning back at him, smiled, then dove under the waves. The rush of cool water was exactly what her body needed; it soothed her burning skin and helped her relax. Serena came up out of the water, and looked for Darien. Within a few seconds, he came up next to her, looking relaxed. He smiled at her and pulled her naked body towards his. Darien kissed her gently, as she clung to his body. Serena pulled away from his lips and smiled brightly.

"Was that worth it?" she asked, giggling. Darien chuckled and nodded his head.

"That was amazing, something about you makes it even better." He said, looking her in the eyes. Serena was glad that it was dark out so he couldn't see her cheeks turn pink. Her heart began to beat faster, but for a completely different reason.

"I'm really glad I'm here with you." Serena said, looking up at Darien who grinned.

"Me too." He said simply before taking his lips with hers again. It confused Darien to no end why she made him feel so different, so much more like a man. He couldn't figure out what was so captivating about her.

Darien continued to kiss Serena, parting her lips with his tongue, gaining access to her mouth. Instead of the furious exchange of tongues that they had previously done, Darien's kisses were soft and sultry. He was gently running his tongue along hers, igniting the fire deep within Serena. No matter how he kissed her, Darien was able to make her burn with desire. Darien's hands softly caressed her breasts, bringing out a moan from Serena's lips.

Serena smiled as she slid down Darien's body and grabbed a hold of his member, feeling it grow harder between her hands as she stroked it. Darien groaned a bit, caught off guard by her sensual touches. He had not expected to be so easily turned on after the release he had just had, but the softness of Serena's hands seemed to disregard any pretenses. Darien's hands slid down her back, over her ass and to her legs, swiftly lifting her up. Serena wrapped her legs around his body, his member pressing firmly against her skin. She pulled away from his lips and smiled.

"In the water?" she asked, giggling. Darien grinned at her as she laughed and began kissing him again. She lifted her body up as Darien positioned himself to enter her again. Once he was ready, Serena lowered herself onto him, moaning in pleasure again as Darien began working his magic. He hooked his arms under her legs so he could better control his thrusts. Serena moaned as Darien was better able to hit her spot. Darien continued thrusting into her, enjoying the feeling of her body wrapped around his.

After another twenty or so minutes, Darien had reached his climax, and Serena had reached hers multiple times. They were both breathing heavy and had sweat on their foreheads. Darien lifted Serena off of him and gently placed her down. Serena couldn't remember the last time her legs had felt so weak. Neither could she remember the last time she had been so sexually attracted to a man. She felt Darien's hand brush her cheek. Smiling, she looked up at him. Darien brought his lips down to hers and kissed her softly.

"You are amazing." He said, looking into her eyes. Serena smiled and nodded.

"Yea, I know." She replied giggling. Darien chuckled as he took her hand and led her out of the water.

They returned to their towel and put their bathing suits back on, not bothering to put on their usual clothes. Hand in hand, they walked back up to the house, ready to get in bed. Darien brought her upstairs and opened the door to his room, letting her in. Serena smiled, but didn't enter.

"Can I join you later?" Serena asked, looking up at Darien. His facial expression changed slightly.

"What? Why?" he asked, confused. Serena giggled and kissed him.

"I need to shower and get all this sand off me."

"Why can't you shower with me?" Darien said, pulling her body to his. Serena rolled her eyes.

"Aren't you tired yet?" she asked.

"Are you kidding me? Tired of having sex with you? No way." He said simply. It was the truth. He felt like there was nobody else that could turn him on the way she did. How Serena did it, was a mystery to him, but seeing her in her bathing suit, and thinking about the sex they had just had was making him a little horny again. His turn around time was just getting quicker and quicker. He ran his hands up and down her back, tracing little circles around the lower part of her back. Serena sighed.

"Even if I tried to shower in your room, you wouldn't let me shower peacefully." She said, grinning at Darien, knowing that he would insist on being in there with her.

"What do you need a peaceful shower for?" he asked, giving her that smile that always made her melt. Serena rolled her eyes.

"I'll be back in fifteen minutes, okay?" she said leaning up and kissing his lips. Darien groaned as she slipped out of his arms and disappeared into her room.

Serena shut the door behind her and immediately shed her bathing suit as she got into the shower. She relaxed a bit as the hot water ran over her body, releasing muscle tension. She quickly washed her body, and then washed her hair. As she climbed out of the shower, she wrapped her hair in a towel and pulled one around her body. As quickly as she could she dried herself off, then went into her Victoria's Secret bag. She pulled out the black teddy she had gotten earlier and pulled it on. It was see-through lace with spaghetti straps, and it clung to her body showing off her natural curves. It wasn't very long, but then again, why should it be? She ran into the bathroom and put on a small amount of make-up, spritzed herself with perfume, and smiled at her reflection in the mirror. Darien was going to love it. She took her hair out of the towel and let the semi-wet locks fall wherever they would. Adding a touch of pink lip gloss to her lips, Serena left her bathroom, grabbed the silk pink bathrobe she had and slipped it on. Gathering up all her courage, she walked out of her room, down the hall and knocked on Darien's door.

* * *

I hope that was a quick enough update for you guys! Half way done with Chapter 16, so hopefully after I move into my apartment, I'll be able to crank out even more chapters even quicker! Hope you liked it!

Reviews please! They'd be helpful!


	16. Chapter 16

-Chapter 16

Darien had just stepped out of the shower and was drying himself off, when he heard a knock on his door. He grinned as he wrapped the towel around his waist, and walked out into the room.

"Come in." he said, waiting for Serena to enter. When she did, he couldn't believe how stunning she was. Had he been a teenage boy, his jaw would have dropped. She looked gorgeous, standing in front of him with her robe on her shoulders, the lace teddy underneath. The way her hair hung on her shoulders, wet or not, cradled her face so that she looked beautiful. She spun around for him, letting the robe expose more of the lingerie she was wearing.

"Do you like it?" she asked, stopping in front of him. Darien was speechless as he took her face in both of his hands, and kissed her lips. He couldn't contain his lust for her. Had Darien been asked to create a more perfect woman, he would have failed. Pulling away from her lips, he brushed her tangled hair out of her face and smiled.

"I love it. You look amazing." He said, as she perked up and smiled.

"I like what you're wearing too." Serena said, taking hold of the towel he had wrapped around his lower half. He grinned at her as he kissed her lips again. Unlike his kisses on the beach, these were more gentle. His lips caressed hers, moving with them. Darien slowly removed her robe, letting his fingers trail down her skin as it came off. The feeling of his fingers on her skin left tingles up and down her spine. As her robe fell to the floor, Darien began walking her backwards and slowly lay her down on his bed, continuing to kiss her lips. He let his hands run across her body; the feeling of her skin on his was electrifying.

Darien left her lying on the bed as he got up and turned the lights out. He came back to her and kissed her lips again, parting them so that his tongue could caress hers. His hands lifted up her teddy, as he caressed the skin on her thighs. Darien pulled away from her lips and began kissing her neck, trailing up and down between her neck and shoulders. He removed each strap from her teddy and pulled it down, exposing her breasts, he went from one nipple to the other, drawing moans from Serena's lips.

Serena couldn't help but shut her eyes and enjoy what was happening to her. This was much different than the beach where neither had cared for intricacies, but had simply gone for their release. This time, Darien was taking his time; warming her up. His hands were touching her the way she liked; his lips began moving further south, as his body spread her legs. He quickly pulled away from her and removed her teddy, throwing it to the ground, leaving her body bare. He settled back in between her legs and continued kissing down her stomach.

Serena gripped the sheets as Darien's tongue slipped inside of her. She moaned as Darien worked over on her, getting the right spots, doing the right things. It was amazing the way he could get her fired up. He kissed back up her stomach and resumed the position on her nipples, going from one to the other. As he did so, Serena let out moans, telling Darien that she was ready for him to enter her. He was driving her crazy, her body ached for him.

"Darien… please." She whispered. Darien grinned as he kissed her lips, and with one hand, removed the towel from around his waist. Serena's hands grasped him, bringing him to full attention. She slid her hands up and down his shaft, making him groan. Her hands led him to her opening, and he pushed inside of her.

Darien was much different this time; his strokes were slower and deeper. He was able to keep hitting spots in Serena as she moaned. Darien kissed her neck as he pushed into her again, holding his position for a little longer, then repeating his motions. Serena couldn't believe how deep he was inside of her. She closed her eyes as he continued his long strokes, moaning his name as he got deeper. Darien's hands worked on her, massaging her breasts, making her moans louder. His right hand traveled down her body where he lifted her leg and looped it around his waist, grinding deeper into her.

"Oh Darien, this is so good!" she moaned as her body neared its release. Darien continued thrusting into her as he sucked from one nipple to the next. Serena moaned out his name as her body reached its climax. Wave after wave of pleasure overwhelmed her body as she clung to Darien's body moving on top of her.

Serena came down from her climax as her breathing slowed. Darien grinned at her as he resumed his deep strokes. Serena brought her lips to his and kissed him hard. The way he was making her feel shocked her, and she wanted to relay the same sentiments. Darien kissed her back, feeling her passion and need behind it. He kissed her hungrily, tasting her lips and claiming them as his. He couldn't imagine a different man doing these things to Serena. He pulled away from her lips and looked her in the eyes as he thrust into her. The way she gazed into his eyes as he moved on top of her showed him how comfortable she was.

Darien groaned as he neared his release and continued his deep strokes. Serena held onto him as he was on the verge. He groaned as he ground deeper into her and released inside of her, as she clung to his body. Darien couldn't believe how good it all felt, how perfect it all was. Slowly, Darien came down off his release and slowly pulled out. Darien kissed Serena's lips and smiled at her.

"You're amazing. I'll never tire of this." He said, kissing her lips again. Serena grinned at him and kissed him back.

"I know- I'm that great." She said smiling. Darien rolled his eyes at her and began kissing her neck, getting Serena riled up again. She started giggling and let Darien take control of her.

* * *

Serena woke up in the morning, and stretched out in her bed. It was the first time since she and Darien had gotten together, that she had woken up alone in her bed. Serena looked around, missing the warmth of Darien's body lying next to her. She crawled out of bed, and grabbed her silk bathrobe off the chair. The rest of her stuff was in a pile next to her open suitcases that were supposed to be ready and packed by now. Darien had an early meeting with the heads of a few companies and had let Serena stay behind; he had gotten up before 7 a.m. so he could be on time to his meeting. But now it was near noon and she wanted to see him.

Serena walked across the hallway and cracked the door open to his bedroom. Darien was sitting at his desk, jacket off, and tie loosened while reading some documents. Serena ventured over to him and slipped her hands down his chest. She undid his tie and began to unbutton his shirt.

"Serena, what are you doing?" Darien asked, putting his reading down.

She continued to unbutton his shirt as she kissed his neck, leaving a trail along his neckline. Darien moaned a little bit and let her continue kissing his neck as she slid her hands into his shirt.

"Hi." Serena said, in between kisses.

"What are you doing blondie?" he asked, grinning. He liked the attention that she was giving him. He didn't want this to end.

"I missed you this morning." She replied. Daren turned in his chair to face Serena and brought her into his lap and kissed her.

"Good." He grinned and got up out of the chair and walked to his closet, changing out of his suit. Serena rolled her eyes at him as she walked over to his bed and lay down.

"Serena, are you packed? We aren't going to wait for you to be ready." Darien said, looking over at her as he pulled his shirt off. Serena couldn't help but stare at him; Darien smirked at her as he watched her look at his body. Serena snapped out of her daze, and rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm mostly packed! I just need to put a few more things away." She replied, staying still on the bed. Darien laughed as he emerged in some shorts and a white t-shirt.

"Okay, that means you have time for..." Darien said, smiling at her with a glint in his eye. Serena giggled at him as he lay on top of her and kissed her. He pulled away from her lips and smiled down at her.

"You should get off me. I still have more packing to do." Serena said, smiling at him. Darien groaned as he buried his head in her neck, taking time to kiss it.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay here with me?" Darien asked, as he continued to kiss her neck, making Serena wish that her clothes could pack themselves.

"I want to, but I can't." she said, bringing his lips to hers and kissing him gently. Darien groaned at her and kissed her again.

"Fine, go pack." Darien said. Serena giggled as she slipped out from underneath him, and out the door, leaving him on his bed.

She got to her room and showered, then did her usual morning routine, setting aside an outfit for the plane ride. She spent the next three hours making sure she had everything packed and ready for the flight and that the room was clean and the sheets were washed. When she finished, she ventured downstairs, moving her bags to the entryway so that things would be easier. Mina and Andrew had already finished moving their belongings to the first floor, while Darien's things were neatly piled on the opposite side. Serena placed her bags next to Darien's and took a second to think about what had been happening over the trip. Her thoughts were interrupted by a deep voice behind her.

"We have two more hours before we have to go. What would you like to do?" Darien asked, coming up behind her from the stairs. Serena turned around and looked up at him.

"Let's all hang out, call Mina and Andrew down here." Serena said, waiting for Darien to take her in his arms, which he did without a second thought.

"I could do that, but they aren't here." Darien said, pulling Serena's body harder against his. Serena laughed and pulled away from Darien and walked into the kitchen where she sat on one of the bar stools and took out her phone to call Mina. She put her phone to her ear just as Darien came up behind her and started kissing her neck.

"Darien! Stop, I'm on the phone!" Serena said, trying to pull away from him. He put his arms around her and stopped her wiggling as he continued to kiss her neck.

"Mina!" Serena squealed as her best friend picked up the phone. She spent a little less than five minutes on the phone with her friend trying to figure out what she and Andrew were doing and where they were. Darien continued to kiss her neck and feel her up while she talked to Mina. He couldn't help but distract her, the way she pulled away from him and laughed made him happy, and he had never felt like that before. After a bit, Serena finally got off the phone, and turned around on her bar stool to face Darien.

"You were right, they're not here." Serena said, looking at Darien, who was standing in front of her with a smirk on his face.

"I'm always right." He replied, leaning forward trying to kiss Serena. She put her hand to his lips and gave him a look. Darien sighed and put his arms on the counter behind her, keeping her in between his arms.

"What is wrong?" Darien asked, looking her in the eye.

"Nothing." She replied, looking back at him. Darien grinned and leaned in to kiss her again, when she moved away from him. Darien sighed and looked at Serena.

"Serena, what's the matter?" he asked, watching her facial expression. She smiled at him, and put her hands on either side of his face and kissed him and held onto his lips a little longer than usual. She pulled away and looked at him.

"Nothing is wrong. I just don't want these two weeks to be up." Serena said, trying not to seem too upset about the entire thing. Darien smiled at her.

"Don't worry, things will only get better." Darien said, kissing her again. In the back of his mind, he knew this wasn't true. He didn't know what would happen when they got back to New York, but he didn't want to dwell on it. Darien was choosing to take advantage of their time together by ignoring the real world.

Serena was letting Darien take advantage of her; she knew how much she was going to miss feeling his lips on hers. She let him run his hands over her body, as she slipped her hands under his shirt. The feel of his warm body was sending sparks down her spine, Serena couldn't help herself. Darien picked Serena up from the stool and placed her on the counter. He pushed himself between her legs and pulled her against him. Serena wrapped her legs around Darien's waist and continued to kiss him. Darien couldn't get enough of her, the way she kissed him and the way she felt against him. Serena pulled away from his lips as she tried to pull off his shirt.

"Mina said they won't be home for another half hour." Serena said, getting anxious as she peeled his shirt off his body. Darien laughed as he looked at Serena.

"Yes, but you called her almost fifteen minutes ago." Darien said as he kissed her neck and ran his fingers across the small of her back. Serena moaned in disappointment.

"But I want you." She said, running her hands down his chest and stomach, feeling each individual ab. Serena bit down on her lower lip, looking up at Darien, knowing he couldn't resist.

"I just… want you one last time here." Serena said, continuing to feel his body underneath her fingertips. She made a bold gesture and ran her hands down below his waist and grabbed his package gently, but with assertion. Darien groaned, he wasn't prepared for her to make such movements. He looked Serena in the eyes and saw that she was serious, that she wanted nothing more than to have sex again. Darien kissed her lips, enjoying the feeling of having her in his arms. He liked how badly she wanted him and how urgent her need was. Darien pulled away from her lips and smiled at her.

"Let's go upstairs." He said. Serena's face brightened up as she hopped off the counter, grabbed Darien's hand and dragged him up the stairs to his bedroom, where they had one last dirty romp in the bed.

Serena lay naked in Darien's bed, trying to catch her breath. She couldn't believe how great the sex had been; she knew she was going to miss it. Darien ran his hand over her stomach and pulled her closer to his own naked body.

"I'm pretty sure Mina is home and that she heard you." He said, running his fingers over her stomach.

"What? She did not hear me!" Serena said, looking back at Darien, who laughed a bit. Serena gave him a look.

"Why are you laughing?" she asked, turning onto her side and looking at Darien. He laughed again, and kissed her lips before climbing out of bed. Serena watched his naked body walk around the room.

"Darien?" she asked again. This time, he turned towards her as he put on a towel over the lower half of his body.

"Serena listen, personally, I think it's sexy when a girl makes noise in bed. I love it. However, Mina and Andrew probably don't think that way every time they walk past my door. Not to mention, the way we fucked just now, I'm surprised you've stopped moaning." Darien said, flashing a grin and walking into his bathroom. Serena's mouth dropped as he said the last few words. Feeling a little frustrated, she climbed out of his bed and walked into the bathroom where Darien had a shower going. She burst into the room, with her hands on her hips.

"Don't act like I was the only one who made noises! You weren't so quiet yourself!" she said, looking at him. Darien opened the door to his shower to look at Serena, who looked a little mad.

"Get in." he said, dismissing her anger. Serena looked taken aback, as she looked at him.

"What?" she asked, suddenly aware of how naked she was.

"Get in the shower, you're already naked. Just get in." Darien said again, taking her hand and pulling her in towards him. Serena let herself be guided into the shower where Darien started kissing her. She let herself melt into his arms as she pressed herself against him, getting deeper into the kisses. Darien slowly pulled away from her lips and smiled down at her.

"You know, there are great acoustics in here." He said with a goofy grin on his handsome face. Serena pulled her hands away from him and pushed him a little as Darien laughed.

"You are not funny." She said, trying to hide the smile on her face. Darien chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her and continued kissing her. Serena couldn't believe how much she enjoyed the feeling of the hot water on her skin as Darien caressed her. Before things got carried away, Darien parted from her lips.

"We only have a couple minutes; it's almost time to go."

"Yea, you're right. We need to hurry up or we'll miss our flight." Serena said, opening the door to the shower and grabbing a towel. She put it around herself, smiled at Darien and kissed him.

"I'll just finish showering in my room, sorry." Serena said as she smiled and walked out of his bathroom. Darien shook his head at her as he shut the shower door and began showering.

Half an hour later, the four of them were in the main hallway ready to leave the house. Both Darien and Serena were abnormally quiet, as they loaded their bags into the trunk of the limo, since they couldn't drive themselves to the airport. It was a silent recognition that what they had was about to change, and neither knew whether those changes were good or bad. After all the bags had been loaded into the trunk, the group of four walked out of the house. Serena didn't know what was going to happen, and she didn't know if she would be able to deal with the consequences of this trip.

Darien opened the door for Serena so she could slide in first. Before climbing into the limo, she took one long last look at the house, trying to make sure she could remember all of the good times that she had had within those walls. Serena looked over at Darien, who had been watching her facial expressions and smiled at him.

"You ready to go back to New York?" she asked. Darien leaned in to her and kissed her lips softly.

"No." he said, looking Serena in the eyes. She seemed a little surprised at his answer, but collected herself quickly, nodded at him then climbed into the limo. Darien slid in after her, shutting the door behind him. He slid his arm around Serena's shoulders and pulled her close to him, staying silent for the entire drive to the airport. The two of them remained like that, savoring the last few moments they had before New York schedules and priorities intruded on their lives.

When they arrived at the airport, Darien helped Serena get her bags and get them checked. The four of them patiently waited as their jet loaded and prepared for flight. After about half an hour, they were seated on the jet and waiting for take-off. Serena and Darien were sitting up front while Andrew and Mina sat in the very back. Serena curled up into Darien's body and put her arms around him, Darien in turn, wrapped his arms around her small body and pulled her close to him. Darien looked down at the woman in his arms and brushed her hair out of her face. Serena looked up and smiled and leaned up and kissed him. Darien kissed her back, pulling her body closer to him. He pulled away from her lips and smiled.

"This has been a great two weeks." Serena said, kissing Darien's neck. "I'm going to miss it." She added, continuing to kiss his neck. Darien chuckled a bit as he let her take advantage of him.

"What are you doing?" he asked. Serena giggled as she continued to kiss his neck and run her hands on him. She ignored the question as she slipped her hand up his shirt to caress his skin. The feel of her fingertips on Darien's skin always made him feel good. He closed his eyes as she continued to caress his skin and moved from kissing his neck to his lips. Darien allowed Serena to be in charge of the movements, letting her dictate to him what she wanted and how she wanted it. Serena moaned into the kiss when his hands cupped her breasts. Darien couldn't help but want to feel all of her. One of his hands slipped underneath her bra and continued to massage her breast as Serena let out a moan, successfully turning him on even more.

Darien pulled away from her lips and looked her in the eyes. "What are you trying to do?" he asked again, as she smiled at him with a glint in her eye. Ignoring him again, Serena continued to kiss him, pushing her body onto his. Darien kept getting lost in her touches and kisses, he kept forgetting that they were on a plane and that there were two other people around them. Part of him didn't care; he wanted to feel her, and she obviously wanted him. Slowly, Serena began to move her body on top of his so that she was straddling him. Once on top of him, she took a quick glance to the back of the cabin, where Mina and Andrew were supposed to be, yet neither were there. Serena giggled a bit as she looked down at Darien, knowing she could get away with what she wanted.

"Serena, what is going on?" Darien asked, pulling her body closer onto his, trying to get her attention. She smiled down at him and kissed his lips.

"Andrew and Mina are gone." Serena said quietly as she kissed him again, holding on a little longer, giving him the hint. Darien pulled away and looked up into her eyes and shook his head at her.

"Sooo?" he asked, letting his hands roam over her body a bit more, knowing that they were alone.

"So, let's take advantage of this." Serena said, kissing Darien's lips and pushing her body onto his. Darien let her take over the movements; he enjoyed how her body moved against his, He let his hands roam up her sundress and caress her thighs. Serena's hands worked down Darien's chest, unbuttoning his shirt and running her hands down his chest. She let her hands wander down to his pants and unbuttoned them. Darien stopped her hands before they could do any more mischief.

"We can't do this here." He said, caressing her cheek with one hand and pulling her lips towards his again. Serena pulled away and smiled at him, she put her hands around his neck and pulled onto him even more.

"Fine, we don't have to do this here. But when we land…" Serena started.

"Oh, when we land, you're all mine." Darien said, finishing her sentence and running his hand across her cheek. He gazed into her eyes for a little bit, hoping that what he said was true. He didn't want to let her go. Serena sighed and climbed off his lap and sat back in her seat. She lifted up her arm rest and curled into his body. Darien wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him. He shut his eyes and leaned the seat back so that they were lying down.

"How long is the flight again?" Serena asked, as she shut her eyes and ran her hand over his abs. The feel of Darien's hands caressing her skin made her melt, there was so much warmth in his arms that Serena didn't want to ever leave.

"Four hours, and we'll be back to New York." He replied, kissing her forehead.

"Back to reality." Serena sighed, keeping her eyes closed. Darien chuckled as he pulled her close. The two of them stayed curled up for the remainder of the flight, laughing and talking. Darien found it hard to believe that things between them could get any better, he felt so connected to her. Serena couldn't stop smiling throughout the flight as they talked. She had never felt so comfortable with somebody before, and she really liked being with him.

Soon enough, the pilot came on over the intercom instructing everybody to remain seated and put seatbelts on as they were approaching the airport in New York. It was as if the entire mood changed; both Serena and Darien were facing reality. They were coming back to New York and things would have to go back to normal. After a couple of minutes of silence, Darien took Serena's hand.

"Once we land, you should come home with me." He said, looking her in the eyes. Serena giggled and leaned over and kissed him.

"Smooth talker." Serena said, smiling at him. Darien chuckled and kissed her again.

"We can't always get it right." He said, squeezing her hand. Serena's spirits were lifted as the flight descended back down onto New York ground.

As the plane came to a stop, Darien helped Serena get all of her belongings together. The two couples walked off the plane in high spirits. Darien had his arm wrapped around Serena's shoulder as her arm clung to his waist. She was so lost in his gaze and charm that she didn't think anything of the predicament she was in. Darien was in another world, completely ecstatic that he would be able to extend his time with Serena even further.

Suddenly, everything came to a halt. Serena had stopped walking, and Darien had not been prepared for the abrupt stop. Mina and Andrew came to a stop directly behind the two of them.

Serena stepped out of Darien's grasp as she realized what was going on. There, standing directly in front of her, was the blonde boyfriend she had left while in the Bahamas.

"Malcolm!"

* * *

Thank you guys so much for reading and sticking with me! Please let me know what you thought of this chapter!

I promise the next one will be incredibly juicy!

*~lady truth~*


	17. Chapter 17

-Chapter 17

"Malcolm!" Serena said, taken aback. There he was, standing at the gate with a bouquet of flowers and a huge smile on his face. He walked towards Serena and wrapped his arms around her, picked her up off the floor and kissed her. Serena didn't even know what was happening; so many things were firing off in her head. She had no idea what was going on and had no idea how she was going to handle this. The feeling of his lips on hers still had an effect on her, and it was confusing her so much. Malcolm finally placed her back onto the ground and pulled away from her lips.

"I missed you so much." He said, looking her in the eyes. Serena couldn't hold his gaze; she quickly smiled at him then dropped his stare, uneasy about what was going on around her.

"Sooo, hey Malcolm, how was New York while we were gone?" Mina said, breaking the awkward silence within the group of people. Serena snapped out of it, and stepped away from Malcolm, then not realizing where to put herself. This was too awkward for Serena; she couldn't stop looking down at her hands, trying to come to some sort of conclusion on where to put herself and how to act. She hadn't even looked at Darien throughout this entire time.

"It was pretty boring, not going to lie. How was the trip? Successful?" Malcolm replied, looking over at Serena, then back to the group. He walked back over to Serena and put his arm around her waist, bringing her closer.

"It went really well, some things went better than expected, we just don't know how long that'll last." Darien replied, glancing over at Serena who didn't seem to be making any movements. He was keeping his anger at bay, not allowing himself to betray his emotions. Serena looked up and caught his gaze long enough to see the anger in his dark blue eyes. She turned away from him and looked back at her hands.

"Well, good to hear… So Serena, I made reservations for dinner, you ready to get out of here?" Malcolm asked, looking at her. Serena didn't know what to say, and couldn't figure out how to form words anymore.

"Serena, could you come to the bathroom with me really quickly? Andrew, Malcolm, Darien, we'll meet you guys outside, okay?" Mina said, grabbing Serena's hand and dragging her towards the bathroom.

"I'll grab your stuff." Malcolm said, as the two blondes practically ran away from the group of men. Serena didn't even know where they were headed, but she let her best friend take her wherever she pleased. They turned a few corners until Mina threw open a bathroom door and pulled Serena inside with her. She placed her in the bathroom and looked in her eyes.

"What the hell?" Mina asked. Serena looked up at her friend.

"I don't even know where to start. Mina, what am I doing? What do I do?" Serena asked, completely unsure of what was happening.

"Serena, I have no idea. This is just insane! Did you know he was going to be here?"

"No! I had no idea! I didn't even think about it! What am I going to do?" Serena said. She couldn't possibly have imagined her predicament getting any worse.

"What do you want? Who do you want?" Mina questioned her, watching her facial expressions. Serena was just trying to catch her breath, trying to sift through her feelings and make a decision between the two.

"Mina, how do I choose? Malcolm is great and he's so sweet. But Darien has this power over me and it drives me wild." Serena said, thinking back to the past two weeks and the time they spent together.

"I know, I know. But think about right now, right here. Who would you be with?" Mina asked. Serena stayed quiet for a few minutes, thinking about what to do.

"Did you know Darien asked me to go home with him after the plane landed? And that he said he wasn't ready to be back in New York?" Serena said, thinking back to their time away from the city. "But then Malcolm was always there, he was always dependable and so sweet."

"Honey, you have to choose. This is unfair to the both of them, and to you. Come on, let's go outside. We've kept them waiting long enough." Mina said, hugging her friend.

"Oh, I hate this." Serena said, pulling away from her friend. They left the bathroom arm in arm towards the guys outside. Once they exited the airport, Serena looked around to find the three men.

"Serena! Come on, we're going to be late!" Malcolm called from a couple feet away. Serena turned towards him and her heart sunk. He was gone. They walked up to Andrew and Malcolm, who were waiting with their bags.

"Where'd Darien go?" Mina asked the two men, knowing that if Serena had asked, Malcolm may have become suspicious.

"Darien had to go, he said he wanted to get back to his New York lifestyle as quick as he could. I guess he missed it here." Malcolm said, unaware of what his words meant to Serena.

"Oh, well that's… nice." Serena said, looking at Andrew whose eyes were filled with remorse. Taking a large breath, Serena turned to Malcolm and pulled herself together.

"Let's go." She said, taking his arm as he led her to his car. Serena turned around and smiled at Andrew and Mina before heading off with him. Malcolm helped Serena put her bags into his car, and soon enough they were seated at one of their favorite restaurants. Serena was not in a good mood, and Malcolm could notice. She wasn't being the girl that he knew her to be; she was quiet and it seemed as if she wasn't even there with him.

"Serena, what's going on? … Serena?" Malcolm said, trying to get her attention, a task which was becoming impossible. "Serena?"

"What? Oh, sorry Malcolm, what were you saying?" Serena said, finally bringing her gaze to his.

"Are you okay? You seem a bit off tonight." He said, taking her hand from across the table.

"Yea, I'm fine, I'm just tired from the flight, that's all." She said, lying through her teeth. Serena did not want to continue her dinner; she was not in the mood for food.

"Well, let's finish up and I'll drop you off at home so you can get a good night's sleep, okay?" he asked, smiling at her from across the table as he gently squeezed her hand. Serena smiled and nodded her head.

Dinner was over, and Malcolm had pulled up in front of Serena's building. He helped her get all of her bags into the building and up to her room. Once she was settled in, she walked him to the door and said her goodbyes. Malcolm was kissing her as if nothing between them had changed. His actions weren't helping her situation. After a bit, Malcolm pulled away from her lips and pulled her body close.

"I've missed kissing you so much, I forgot how good it felt." He said, brushing a piece of hair out of her face. Serena smiled at him and kissed him again. She was hoping that by kissing him, she could avoid using words and didn't have to tell him she had not missed him as much as he did her. They finally separated lips for good when Malcolm said he had to go.

"I'll call you tomorrow? Are you going to work in the morning?" he asked, curious.

"I'm not sure, maybe early afternoon. I'll let you know." Serena said, smiling at him. He nodded his head and kissed her one last time before leaving. She watched the blonde man walk away from her, knowing that something between them was going to have to change. Serena got ready for bed, mulling over the decision she still had to make. Darien was losing right now; she couldn't believe that he had walked away. She didn't know what would happen the next time she saw him, she wasn't even sure if she was going into the office in the morning, Darien had not made it clear if they would go in tomorrow, or wait until Monday to resume office work. Serena lay in bed, hoping that she would be able to see Darien soon, that for some reason he needed her in the office. She fell asleep thinking about the two men, hoping to come to a decision.

Serena woke up to the sound of her blackberry going off. Groggy and unhappy, she answered the phone.

"Hello?" she said, yawning.

"Good morning Serena, I just wanted to call and tell you that you didn't need to come in today." Andrew said, waiting for her reaction. Serena's heart kind of skipped a beat, and she was suddenly awake.

"Oh, okay. Um, so I don't need to come in until Monday?" Serena asked feeling a little upset.

"Yea, I'm sorry Serena." Andrew said. "How are you?" he asked, feeling a little concern for her. He knew what the past two weeks meant to her, and he had seen how upset she got when she realized Darien had left.

"I'm, I'm okay, I guess." Serena said, not knowing how to answer his question. She didn't want him to know that she was upset over Darien. "It's just a little hard."

"Don't worry Serena, things will work out. Darien doesn't know what he's doing; you've got to cut him some slack. Trust me, he'll come around." Andrew said.

"I know, I just don't know if I want to wait for him to 'come around.'" Serena said, closing her eyes and melting back into her pillow. "Listen Andrew, thanks for checking up on me. I'll see you on Monday."

"Yea, Monday morning." He said before hanging up the phone. Serena hung up as well and curled up into her pillow, upset about where she was. She slowly fell asleep, an uneasy one, but sleep nonetheless. After a couple more hours, Serena felt her bed move around her, then felt a body lay behind her. She smiled to herself when she realized who it was. She turned around to face her best friend, who was all smiles next to her.

"Good afternoon sleepy head!" Mina said, sitting up and smiling at Serena. "I brought take-out and a ton of old movies so we can sit around and veg all day."

"Mina, you're the best." Serena said, sitting up in her bed, and hugging her friend. "Okay, so let me go take a shower and I'll be out soon."

"Awesome, I'll get the food and the movies ready!" Mina said, jumping out of bed and heading to the kitchen. Serena hopped out of bed and headed to her bathroom where she quickly showered and washed her hair. The hot water relaxed her body, allowing the tension in her muscles to disappear. Soon enough, Serena climbed out of the shower, and got dressed.

"Hurry up Sere! I'm starving and I can't eat without you!" Mina yelled from her kitchen. Giggling, Serena walked out of her room into the kitchen, where she and Mina devoured as much food as they could. They stayed on Serena's couch eating all kinds of stuff that was horrible for you, but it made Serena feel better. Drowning her problems in ice cream was the easiest thing she had done since she had arrived back in New York. After an afternoon full of junk food and romance movies, Serena and Mina finally left the apartment. Serena climbed into Mina's car and the two of them sped off.

"I can't wait for manis and pedis, its been so long since I've gotten one!" Mina said, examining her nails.

"I know! Its going to be so relaxing, I love spas." Serena added, smiling to herself. The two of them spent the next two hours being pampered at their usual spa, letting themselves relax in the chairs. Once they were finished, they left and picked up a pizza then returned to Serena's apartment, where they continued their fest.

"Oh my god Mina, we're going to have to hit the gym hard tomorrow. Look at all we ate!" Serena said, looking at the mess they had made. Mina laughed as she looked around and nodded.

"Ugh, so much food!" she moaned, clutching her stomach. She rolled over onto her stomach and picked up her phone, checking her messages. Mina giggled as she grinned and texted somebody back. Serena watched her friend's happy face and instantly felt jealous. Not wanting to feel upset, Serena picked up her phone and began texting Malcolm. It was for selfish reasons, she knew that, but she was feeling so down that she wanted a pick me up. She sent Malcolm a quick text asking what he was up to. After a couple of minutes, he texted her back, saying all the sweet things she was hoping for. She continued to text him throughout the rest of the night and they planned on seeing each other the next day. Soon enough, Mina got up to leave.

"Alright sweetheart, I'm going to go meet up with Andrew." Mina said, gathering up her stuff and cleaning up the kitchen. She looked over to see Serena on her phone. "Sere, who are you texting?" Serena's head popped up and she looked at Mina.

"It's Malcolm." She replied, finishing up her text and putting her phone down, and helping Mina in the kitchen.

"Serena, you need to make a decision, before things keep getting out of hand." Mina said, looking at Serena, who rolled her eyes and sighed.

"I know, I'll figure this out soon." Serena said. Mina smiled and hugged her.

"Everything will work out, trust me. If you want I'll tell Andrew to kick Darien's ass for you." Serena laughed at her friend.

"No, but thanks." She said.

"Okay, well I'll see you later! Andrew says don't let him get to you." Mina said, looking at her phone.

"Well tell him I said hey, and its too late." Serena said, walking Mina to the door. Mina smiled at Serena, hugged her and then walked out the door. Serena shut it behind her and went into the kitchen where she finished cleaning up. From the couch, she heard her phone beep, so she quickly finished up her cleaning then resumed her place on the couch and continued to text Malcolm.

After a bit, Serena moved into her room and got ready for bed. Once she was ready, she turned out her lights and crawled under the covers. It wasn't until then that she realized that she would be sleeping alone. The night before, she had been so exhausted that she had fallen asleep the second her head had hit the pillow, but this time it was different. Serena was consciously aware that she was alone. She picked up her phone and began going through her contacts trying to get back to Malcolm's, when her seeker stopped at Darien's name. Serena's heart sunk a little; she knew that she would have loved to call him and tell him to come keep her company, but she couldn't. Her pride wouldn't allow it. She quickly continued scrolling down until she landed on Malcolm.

Serena lay there looking at his name and somehow couldn't get herself to ask him over. She groaned as she put her phone on her nightstand and turned over and tried to get some sleep. It took her two hours before she settled down and could finally sleep. However, she continued to have dreams of Malcolm and Darien. It didn't help her predicament that even whilst asleep she had a difficult time of choosing between the two.

* * *

Serena woke up on Monday morning, getting up extra early. She had gone to sleep early the night before so that she would wake up fresh and flawless. Serena looked over her shoulder to see Malcolm asleep next to her. She smiled a bit, but knew what she had to do. It wasn't fair to him that he was getting, well at a loss for better words, cheated on. Serena knew he deserved better than that and she had to be honest. She just wanted to go into work and make sure that things between her and Darien were over. Serena climbed out of bed and hopped in the shower; doing everything she could to make herself look irresistible, she was quite happy that she had gotten her nails done with Mina saturday afternoon.

After a while, Serena was ready to head off to work. She was wearing a high waisted pencil skirt with a blue button up, she knew Darien liked her hair best natural, so she simply ran a brush through her hair and let the ends curl gently, and her make-up was flawless. She slipped on a pair of black peep-toe pumps and went to have breakfast in the kitchen while Malcolm got ready for work as well.

"Have a great day at work. I'll see you later babe." Malcolm said as the two of them walked to their cars going in separate directions. Serena smiled and kissed him quickly.

"You're too good for me. I'll see you later." She said, turning away from him and walking to her car. Malcolm chuckled and walked to his car as well. Serena couldn't keep her heart from racing as she got closer and closer to work. She had no idea what was going to happen when she saw Darien. Soon enough, Serena was on the elevator riding to the top of the building, her heart pounding in her chest.

Darien was sitting in his office, trying to do work. He couldn't focus on the papers that were sitting in front of him. He was so anxious to see Serena, he didn't know if he would be able to see her, or be in the same room as her. He had already spoken to Andrew about it, and was hoping that he'd be able to deal with her until he could figure out what he was going to do about this situation. He heard the sound of her shoes clicking against the floor, and his heart began to pound. Darien knew that she would come to the office looking fantastic; he knew Serena's mind and the way she worked.

Andrew walked out of his office when he heard Serena walk onto the floor. He couldn't help but smile at her, she looked gorgeous and he knew that was her plan.

"Good morning Serena, how was your weekend?" he asked, knowing what her answer would be.

"Not the best. I'm assuming I'm with you this morning?" she asked, looking at him. Andrew chuckled and nodded his head. Serena breathed a sigh of relief as she walked into his office and sat at the chair in front of his desk. Andrew shut the door behind him and sat behind his desk and looked at Serena for a second. She looked back up at him with her bright blue eyes.

"Are you okay?" Andrew asked, looking into her eyes, knowing she wouldn't be able to lie to him this way. Serena looked down at her hands for a few seconds. "Serena, you know he cares about you, you know that the trip meant a lot to him…"

Andrew saw her hands shaking a bit in her lap so he stopped talking; he didn't want to make her any more upset. He patiently waited for Serena to collect herself. He watched as she wiped the tears out of her eyes. It really killed him to see her so upset. Serena took a deep breath and looked up at Andrew, and smiled a little. He saw the tears that were in her eyes; the ones she refused to let fall. Andrew smiled back at her.

"Thanks for your concern Andrew, really." Serena said, looking back up at him. "Well, we should get started. I just want to get my mind off things." Andrew nodded as he brought out the set of papers that they were going to work on and changed the subject. The two of them spent the morning going over files and reports. At about 1 in the afternoon, they took a break for lunch. Serena met up with Mina on their lunch break while Andrew stayed at the office, preferring to eat while catching up on other work. Once the girls were gone, Andrew knocked on Darien's office door.

"Come in." Darien said from behind the door. Andrew walked into his office and sat in front of the desk. After waiting a few moments, he finally spoke up.

"Darien, you've got to talk to her." Andrew said, waiting for his reaction. Darien stopped what he was doing and looked up at him. He sighed, and sat back in his chair.

"What do you want me to say to her?" he asked, hoping for some sort of idea.

"Can't you just tell her how you feel?" Andrew asked looking at Darien, who rolled his eyes.

"Listen, I'll do what I can." Darien said. Andrew sighed and got up from the chair and walked towards the door. Before he left, he turned around to face Darien.

"Don't mess this up, okay?" Andrew chuckled as he walked out of the room. Darien grinned as he returned to his work in front of him. He spent the next few minutes trying to get his work done, but also straining to hear when Serena returned from her break. After about an hour or so, he heard the sound of Serena's giggle as she and Mina returned from lunch. The two of them were chatting and laughing, and soon enough he heard Andrew's voice call out to Mina. Darien slowly got up from his desk and went to his door. Taking a calming breath, he opened it to see Serena talking to Mina, who was wrapped in Andrew's arms.

"Serena, you're with me for the rest of the afternoon. We have plenty to do, let's get started." Darien said quickly. Serena turned to him looking almost terrified. By the time Serena had pulled herself together, Darien had already left the door. Serena looked back at Mina and Andrew and they both shook their heads.

"Go on Serena," Mina said, "you can do this, no matter what happens." Serena nodded and took a deep breath. She walked to his office and opened the door then walked in, shutting it behind her. Serena's heart was pounding in her chest; she didn't know what was going to happen. This is how things had started off in the beginning. Serena looked to the chair behind the desk and found it empty. Confused, she stopped and began looking around for Darien. Seconds later, she felt strong arms wrap themselves around her body. Next she felt his body press against hers; she could feel his breath on her neck as he pushed her hair aside. Serena closed her eyes as she finally felt his lips on her neck, right where she liked them. Darien kissed up her neck, making sure that she was enjoying the contact.

"Darien…" Serena whispered, trying to gain control of the situation.

"Shhh." He said, turning her towards him and putting a finger to her lips. Darien looked into her eyes for a while, relishing the feeling of having her in his arms. He touched her face and he saw the tears come into her eyes. Darien put his forehead to hers then kissed her lips gently. Serena pulled away from him and took a step back, shaking her head.

"Darien… I…" Serena started, she couldn't figure out what she wanted to say to him. Darien took her hands, and pulled her to him. He took her hands and kissed the inside of her palm on each hand.

"I'm sorry. I apologize completely. Serena, I was wrong, I should have stayed… I should have fought for you." He said, looking her in the eyes.

"Darien, I-I just don't know…" she started, but Darien had already put his lips against hers. His lips worked their usual magic over her, parting her lips and allowing him to taste her even more. He couldn't help but press himself onto her, and his urgency increased as Serena pushed her body onto his. The two seemed to be unaware of anything else in the world at that point; just their two bodies coming together. Yet again, Serena pulled away. This time she took two more steps back and shook her head forcefully.

"No, Darien! No! This isn't right, we aren't right! I have a boyfriend… and you're married still; this isn't right." Serena said, finally able to look at Darien. He stared back at her in the eyes, trying to read what she was saying.

"Serena, let me make it up to you; let me apologize." He said, taking her hands again. Darien pulled her body towards his and looked her in the eyes, just holding her gaze, trying to express to her that he would do anything for her. "I missed you this weekend. I missed waking up next to you, holding you next to me." He said, kissing her cheek.

"I missed your laugh, I missed calling you blondie, and seeing you smile when you're annoyed with me." He said, grinning as Serena smiled at him. "I missed being with you."

"I missed you too." Serena said, rolling her eyes and smiling. She looked at him and kissed his lips, pressing her body against him. She took his hand and led him to his chair, where she sat him down. Serena stood in front of him, with a smile on her face. Darien watched her as she pulled her blouse out of her skirt and began unbuttoning it.

"I missed a lot about you this weekend…" Serena said, biting her lip. Darien couldn't believe what he was seeing in front of him.

"Serena, are you sure you want to do this… here?" Darien asked. Serena giggled as she leaned over, put her face by his and kissed his lips.

"What else would you want to do?" she asked, letting Darien get an eyeful of what was hidden underneath her blouse.

* * *

Get ready for a possibly steamy chapter 18, and we'll see if Serena will actually break up with Malcolm. Will Darien do anything about Lita? Or will there be more drama between the two who seem to be so perfect for each other?

Hope you liked it! Leave your reviews please!

~*ladytruth*~


	18. Chapter 18

-Chapter 18

* * *

Darien smiled as Serena stood back up and removed her blouse, revealing one of the bras that she had gotten with him. She dropped the blouse to the floor and put her hands on the back of her skirt, getting ready to unzip it when Darien stood up and moved towards her, putting his arms around her body, and lifting her onto his desk. Serena giggled as she kissed his lips, putting her hands on either side of his face, kissing him again and again. Darien pulled Serena's skirt up so he could stand in between her legs. He continued to kiss her lips hungrily; it had been far too long since he was able to kiss her and feel her against his body. Serena was responding just as much as he was, pressing her body against his.

The moans coming from her mouth made Darien want her even more; Serena's hands left his face as she loosened his tie to unbutton his shirt and quickly removed it. She had never felt so much passion in her life, and she couldn't stop herself. Once she had removed his shirt, she ran her hands over his chest, loving the spark she felt on her fingertips as she touched him. Darien's strong hands gripped her small frame, pulling it harder against him as he unzipped the back of her skirt. His mind was on one track and couldn't be stopped. Darien reached behind Serena's back and undid her bra throwing it to the ground. He cupped one breast as he continued to kiss her, enjoying the sound of her moans as she pressed her body against his harder.

Serena's hands drifted down to Darien's pants and began taking off his belt and unzipping them. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and began pulling his pants down off his hips with her legs. Darien returned the favor by pulling Serena's skirt down and off her legs, leaving her in just the lace underwear she was wearing. She leaned up and kissed Darien's lips softly as she ran her hands down his chest to his boxers and began pulling them down, which exposed all of Darien's manhood. Serena slowly took the member into her hands and began moving them up and down his shaft, getting him harder. Darien shut his eyes and allowed himself to enjoy the sensations she was creating. Without another word, Serena slid down to her knees and took him into her mouth.

Darien had not been expecting this kind of attention, but the moment Serena's lips were wrapped around him, he couldn't have been more excited. He groaned as Serena worked her magic, going up and down on his dick, licking and sucking as well as she could. She continued the stroking motion with one of her hands in time with her head movements, giving Darien two different sensations at the same time. Serena continued like this for some time as Darien slowly began to lose his cool because of the blonde woman. Darien's hands were lost in Serena's hair, kindly guiding her movements, allowing him more pleasure. After a couple more minutes, he let out a loud groan, pushing himself deeper into her mouth.

"Damn it, Serena, I'm going to cum. Oh god." He said, gritting his teeth. Serena let out a muffled "mhmmm" to let him know she was ready. Darien groaned again as he finally released into her mouth, Serena swallowing the entire thing. When she was finished, she licked her lips, stood up and faced Darien. He grinned at her as he gently pushed her back onto his desk. He stood in between her legs, pressing himself against her wetness, without taking her panties off. Serena lay back as he stimulated her through the thin fabric, while also getting himself hard again. Darien smiled, as he pulled her underwear off, one leg at a time, and throwing it to the pile of clothes on the floor.

Serena leaned back up to him and kissed his lips letting herself run her hands over his body. Darien was losing himself in her kiss, letting her run his hands over his body, sending chills down his spine. He couldn't believe that this was happening in his office, nothing like this had ever occurred here, on his desk. Serena pulled away from his lips, and with a naughty look in her eye, she smiled, slid off his desk, turned away from him, and slowly leaned over letting her arms keep her up. Serena's round ass was poking out, ready for Darien to take her from behind. He smiled as he pressed himself against her opening, then finally entering her.

The moan that came from Serena's mouth excited him more than anything else. He missed the sound she made when they were together. Darien continued with his strokes, enjoying the feel of her and the moans she was producing. Serena was losing it; she had never felt anything near this good. She had missed this feeling, having Darien inside of her, going in and out of her. The way that their bodies moved together was something that made her shake with pleasure. Darien continued with his movements to both of their enjoyment.

"Darien! Oh my god… so good! I'm going to cum… oh god!" Serena arched her back and let out a loud moan as she reached her climax. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt this good, that they had been so good. Her body shook as convulsion after convulsion of pleasure swept over her body, and let out a loud moan. After a while, Serena finally calmed down and turned around to face Darien. She smiled at him and kissed his lips.

"Damn, I missed that." She said, smiling. Darien grinned as he pushed Serena back onto the desk so that she was sitting on the very edge. Serena wrapped her hand around Darien's member and led him to her opening. She moaned as he slipped inside of her again, restarting the motions from before. After a little bit, Darien lifted one of her legs, and she hooked it around his waist, allowing him to get deeper into her. Darien began to groan as he entered her time and time again, loving the feel of her closing around him.

Darien continued his strokes as he kissed Serena's lips. He loved it when she moaned against his lips, that way he could feel her tremble. The way it turned him on knowing that he could do this to her body was intense. Serena was nearing her release again, and the way that her hands gripped his back showed him how much she was enjoying this. He slowed down the pace so that Serena could catch her breath.

"You are so good." She said, shaking her head, and kissing his lips again, pushing herself back onto him. Darien groaned as he picked up the pace again, loving the way her body responded to him. He kissed her lips as he entered her again, holding himself there to fully enjoy the feeling of having him around himself. He then continued at his previous pace, making Serena moan against his lips. After a bit Serena was moaning again, getting excited and almost begging for him.

"Oh god, Darien!... harder, please!... yes!" she screamed, completely forgetting she was in his office. Darien couldn't help himself as he slammed into her deeper, he was nearing his release and he was unable to stop. He needed to get off inside her; he had to have that feeling again. His strokes were deeper and harder, he picked up the pace as Serena responded enthusiastically.

"Damn, Serena… I'm going to cum… so tight!" Darien groaned as he moved inside of her, driving himself crazy. He had to release soon, and with a loud groan, he began releasing inside of her, as he thrust back into her, again and again. Serena moaned as he came, loving the feeling. Soon, they were both calming down. Darien pulled out of her and kissed her lips, not wanting to miss another moment.

"Best. Sex. Ever." Serena whispered, kissing his lips again as he laughed a bit.

"I'm the best with you." He said, looking her in the eyes, making sure she knew that he meant what he said. She grinned at him, and kissed his lips again.

"Let's get dressed, shall we?" Darien said, with his usual grin on his face. Serena smiled and got off his desk as she went around piecing together her outfit. Finally, after they were both dressed and cleaned up, they began working. It wasn't like the other days when they worked together, this time Serena sat much closer to Darien, while he stole kisses from her when she tried to explain concepts. They were having fun with each other, playing and touching. It was a new experience for them, and they were making the most out of it. Darien knew they weren't getting much work done, but he couldn't stop from losing himself in Serena's kisses, but it was worth it.

As it neared time to go, Darien became a little more stern about getting their work done. In the last hour, they seemed to pull it together and accomplish a good amount of the necessary tasks. Serena leaned back in her chair and sighed.

"Time to go home, I'm tired. And hungry." She said with a grin on her face. At that moment, Andrew knocked on the office door.

"You guys finished fucking in there? Haven't heard any noises in a while…" he called through the door. Darien chuckled.

"Come in." he said, shaking his head. Andrew came into the office and laughed as he saw Serena's face turn pink.

"It seemed as if you were really enjoying yourself earlier."

"Shut up." Serena said, giving him a mean look. Andrew grinned.

"Well, I'm leaving for the day, unless you two want to join Mina and I for dinner?"

Darien glanced over at Serena, looking for her approval of the idea. Serena smiled and shook her head.

"That sounds like fun! Where are we going?" she asked, curious.

"It doesn't matter. We will think of something." Andrew said.

"Alright, well let me get my stuff together and we can get going." Darien said, putting his files into his briefcase and setting things up on his computer. Serena got up and went to her desk in the lobby and got her purse and other belongings together and waited for Darien. He finally emerged from his office and walked up to Serena, smiled and kissed her quickly.

"Where is Andrew?" he asked, looking around. Serena shrugged her shoulders as they waited for Andrew. Finally, he came out of his office and joined the two by the elevator.

"Let's go. We're going to some French place Mina picked out." Andrew said, rolling his eyes. "Sometimes it's okay to eat at a regular place." He said, half talking to himself, half thinking out loud. Serena gave him a weird look, but followed him into the elevator anyways.

* * *

They had just finished dinner and were happily walking out of the restaurant as they said their goodbyes. Serena and Mina were giggling together a couple steps in front of the guys. Andrew shook his head, there was no use in trying to separate the two of them until it was necessary. They were attached. Soon enough, they released each other from their special world, so Darien walked Serena to her car, taking Mina's place. He had enjoyed their day together and didn't want it to end, and he did not want to leave her. They arrived at her car and she turned around to face him. Darien put his arms around her waist and pulled her body against his.

"Good night, Serena." He said, before kissing her on the lips, holding them there for a couple of seconds. When he pulled away, Serena didn't look happy.

"What's wrong?" he asked, slightly confused about why she was looking so upset. Serena leaned up and kissed him again before answering.

"Last night I slept alone, and I hated it. Don't make me do that again." Serena said, looking up at him with her blue eyes.

"Serena, what do you want from me? You've got a boyfriend that is probably waiting for you to call tonight. You can't really do that if I'm with you." He said, looking her in the eyes. Serena pouted at him.

"I can if you stay very quiet in the background." She said, laughing a little bit. Darien grinned at her and kissed her lips.

"Trust me blondie, if I'm coming over, neither of us will have a quiet night." He responded, as he kissed her neck slowly. She giggled and closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his lips on her skin; she didn't want it to end.

"Please come home with me? Please?" Serena asked, giving Darien her sad eyes.

"Serena, you know it's not a good idea."

"Why not? Don't you want to stay with me?" she asked, intentionally making him dig himself into a hole.

"Yes, of course. You know I do." He said, falling for Serena's trap.

"Then why can't you come home with me?" Serena asked, continuing to seem upset. Darien sighed, and shook his head. He stayed quiet for a few moments, but then finally agreed.

"Fine, you win blondie. But we need to figure this out before the next time." He said, as Serena smiled at him.

"Sure! Now, let's get going, we have a long night ahead of us!"

* * *

Darien lay on his side as he watched Serena breathe in and out. They both lay naked in her bed after a couple of pleasurable hours. He brushed the hair out of her face gently as he admired her beauty. She looked so peaceful and happy as she lay there in his arms. Serena cuddled her body further against his and kissed his skin.

"I like sleeping with you. Feel so comfortable. It has to be you." Serena mumbled half awake and half asleep. Darien stopped caressing her skin as he tried to focus more on what she was saying.

"What?" he asked softly, not wanting to ruin her thoughts, but she was already sound asleep. Darien watched as her chest rose and fell, and he listened to her breathing. This was what he had missed the most; having her fall asleep in his arms. The peaceful look she had on her face was calming to him; he liked the pressure of her body on his. Darien kissed her forehead and brushed the hair out of her face before he settled down and tried to sleep, which, unlike the past weekend came much easier.

Darien woke up feeling a little weird. He couldn't differentiate the feeling he was having in his stomach. It took a while for him to realize what was going on. He opened his eyes and looked down, and was turned on even more by the sight of the blonde going down on him. He let out a groan as he neared his climax. He couldn't believe that Serena was doing this; he hadn't expected something like this, which is why he was so turned on by it.

"Damn Serena, I'm going to cum… oh shit!" Darien said as he let out a loud groan and pushed himself deeper into her mouth as he began to release. He was enjoying the feeling, as the excitement ripped through his veins. After a couple of seconds, he slowly came down off his orgasm. He breathed in deeply as Serena worked her little magic after he was done. Serena crawled back up to Darien with a mischievous grin. She kissed him from his abs up to his chest, up his neck, and then kissed his lips.

Serena slid her body on top of his as she kissed him. Darien chuckled as he kissed her lips.

"Thanks for my wake-up call… very sexy." He said, putting his arms around her waist and pulling her body harder against his. Serena giggled as she spread her legs so she could straddle him.

"I was feeling a little feisty." She said giggling.

"Mmmm, it was a great idea." He said continuing to kiss her lips.

"You should hear the other ideas I have planned." Serena responded as she continued to kiss him. "But not right now, we have work in a couple of hours."

"Such a tease." Darien said, as Serena climbed off of him and lay back on the bed.

"I can't help it." She said as she continued to kiss him and touch his body. Darien grinned as he kissed her back, slowly moving on top of her, and spreading her legs with his. Serena pulled away from him and smiled.

"What are you doing?" she asked as he started kissing her neck. "Darien, stop!" she giggled, trying to push him off of her.

"Do you really want me to stop?" he asked in between kisses. Serena couldn't bring herself to say yes while he was kissing her. As much as she knew that this would exhaust her for the day, she couldn't help but think about how much she had missed being with him, and didn't want to miss out on anything anymore.

"No… I don't." she replied, letting him continue. Serena enjoyed the rest of their night, making sure to really appreciate the way Darien touched her and kissed her. She even stayed up a bit afterwards to savor the way he held her, and how he would leave little kisses on her forehead when he thought she was asleep. Serena's heart ached, she wanted to be able to give him everything, to not worry about whether or not Malcolm would want to spend the night with her, or go to dinner, or even call her when she was with him. Serena knew what she had to do, and the sooner the better. She just hoped that Darien would do the same for her, after all he was the one still married to somebody. Serena fell asleep comfortably in his arms and woke up feeling good for not getting enough sleep.

Darien kissed her lips softly, waking her up. "Time to get up." He said softly. Serena smiled and curled into his body before opening her eyes and sitting up, letting the sheet uncover her naked body.

"Good morning." She said, smiling. Serena stretched out a little bit, then leaned over, quickly kissed Darien, then got up and walked into the bathroom and started the shower. After about ten minutes, Darien walked into the bathroom and climbed in behind her. Serena turned towards him and smiled.

"Good thing I'm done with my shower." Serena said, looking up at him. Darien laughed.

"Good, I didn't want to start anything, I would hate that." He said, kissing her lips. Serena stayed in the shower for a little bit with him, then got out and began getting dressed for the day. Serena sat on the edge of her bed with her towel wrapped around her as she put lotion on. Once she was done, Darien had come out of the shower, with a towel wrapped around the lower half of his body. As he walked out, he shook his head, which showered droplets of water on Serena.

"Hey! You're getting water on me. Stop!" Serena said, whining at him. Darien laughed as he leaned over and kissed her.

"So sorry, I apologize." He said. Serena made a face at him, then got up and went to the bathroom to fix her hair, while Darien put the suit he had worn the previous night back on. Once Darien was done getting dressed, he went and found Serena in her bathroom, putting on her make-up. He came up from behind her and kissed her forehead.

"You don't need it, you're gorgeous without it." He said, looking at her in the mirror. Serena laughed at him.

"You're so cute when you suck up." She said, looking him in the eyes through the mirror.

"So are you." He said with a smug grin on his face as he thought of his morning wake up call. Serena rolled her eyes at him.

"Get out!" she laughed. Darien grinned and walked out of the bathroom to leave her alone. Serena finished up with her make-up and then went to her closet to pick out her outfit for work. She finally settled on a black and white dress. She went to her dresser and picked out a bra and panties and slipped those on before she put her dress on over them. She picked out her white belt, and fastened it around her waist, then picked out a necklace and doubled it around her neck. Serena then went back to the bathroom and got some bobby pins and pinned one side of her hair back. Smoothing out her dress, she smiled in the mirror and was satisfied.

Darien was sitting in the kitchen drinking a glass of water, waiting for Serena to finish getting ready. It didn't take too long before she emerged from her room, looking ready for the day, and beautiful. He smiled as she walked towards him with a smile on her face.

"Is that what you call breakfast?" she asked, looking at his glass of water.

"I don't like breakfast foods." He said matter-of-factly. He had never been a fan of any of the typical breakfast meals. Serena looked at him with a weird look.

"Seriously?" she asked. Darien grinned.

"Seriously." He said, looking her in the eyes. She sighed.

"Fine, I'll just cook for myself." Serena said as she walked to her fridge and began searching for something to eat. She was in the middle of digging through her fridge when she heard a knock at her door. It was as if everything froze, she knew who it would be, she didn't even have to think about it. Her heart started beating fast in her chest, as she turned to Darien, who wasn't moving either.

"Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit." Serena said, not knowing what to do with herself, let alone with the man that technically shouldn't be there. "What do we do? Darien, what do we do? Holy shit. Fuck." Serena said, freaking out.

"Listen, just answer the door, calm down. I'll disappear." Darien replied, walking out of the kitchen and into the guest bedroom. He sat on the extra bed and focused on controlling his anger. He heard Serena open the door, and he heard a man's voice. Darien got off the bed and went to stand by the door, curiosity had taken over him. He heard mumbling and then nothing. It wasn't until after a few seconds later that he realized there was silence because their lips were occupied.

Finally, the silence stopped and he could hear her voice. He was trying to figure out what she was saying, if she was telling him to leave, or something along those lines. All of a sudden, he heard her bedroom door open, then shut. It was as if there was a crater in his stomach, Darien had to get out. He couldn't stay in the apartment while they did, who knows what. He quickly opened the door, making sure to keep quiet, and snuck out closing the door behind him. He reached the apartment door and opened it quietly, and left as quickly as he could.

Serena was trying to stop the actions that were happening. Malcolm continued to kiss her, holding her close. Her heart was exploding, not knowing how to stop, but also not wanting to give away her nervousness. She pulled away from his lips.

"Malcolm, I have to get to work, you know that." Serena said, but Malcolm ignored her words as he pressed his lips against hers again. He pulled her body against his, which sent a spark down her spine. She was surprised that he was affecting her so much. She knew that she didn't want to be with him, but her body was responding. She pulled away again, looking him in the eyes. He looked back at her, holding her gaze with his green eyes.

"Okay, okay, okay, I'll stop" he said, chuckling and stealing one last kiss from her lips. "Its time for work I guess. I just wanted to see you before I went back in this morning."

"You're quite possibly the sweetest guy I know." Serena said honestly, taking his hand and leading him out of her bedroom. He reluctantly followed after her, back into the kitchen. Malcolm reached in his pocket as his BlackBerry beeped. Serena waited patiently as he read the message that had just came in.

"Sorry baby, I've got to head over right now. I wanted to treat you to Starbucks, but another time?" Malcolm asked, kissing her lips longingly. Serena savored his kiss, trying to remember it for a while, knowing that they were going to end soon. She smiled at him, and kissed him lightly again.

"It's okay, another time. Have a good day." she said as he walked out of her apartment, turning to giver her a wink, then walked out the door. Serena stood there for a second before rushing to her door, bolting it locked, then heading to her guest room to talk to Darien. She burst through the door, only to find the room empty. Her heart sunk.

Serena couldn't believe the mess she was in! Putting her heels on and grabbing her purse, she rushed out the door to the parking lot. She wanted to get to work as early as she could so that she could talk to Darien, calm him down, and not let him stew in his own anger. She arrived at the office building in good timing.

As she walked into the building and onto the elevator, it dawned on her that she had nothing to say to Darien. There was no excuse for what had happened at her apartment; she was supposed to have made her decision by now, yet she dragged it on and on. The other half of her was telling her to calm down, that Darien also had his own problems that had yet to be dealt with. She shook all the thoughts out of her head as she walked out onto their floor and straight to his office door, and knocked loudly.

Darien looked at his door, knowing what would erupt if he allowed the blonde woman in. His anger was still strong and he didn't want things to get out of hand, or say things he wouldn't mean. But as he sat there, she continued to knock.

"Darien! Please, let me in. I'm sorry." She said through the door. Darien sighed, knowing that this would be a bad idea. He took a deep breath preparing himself for the argument that was about to erupt.

"Come in."

* * *

Sorry that took so long! I am really going to be better about this, I promise! Hope this didn't disappoint! Reviews are always welcome!


	19. Chapter 19

-Chapter 19

Darien sat at his desk waiting for Serena to walk into his office. He heard the door open and she walked in. He kept his head down and focused on the papers in front of him, he couldn't look at her. It was as if every time he thought of her, the image of Malcolm came into his thoughts. Serena stood there, waiting for him to start yelling, or to do something, anything, but he wouldn't look at her.

"Darien…" she said softly, trying to catch his attention. Darien put the papers down and looked at the woman in front of him. "Can we talk?" she asked.

"What? What do you want? What do you want to talk about? Do you want to talk about how I hid in your extra room while you and your boyfriend made out on the other side of the door? Or how you guys went into your room and did, god knows what?" he said, letting his anger get the better of him.

"Darien, I'm sorry! I didn't know what to do! I didn't do anything with him in my room, he left!" Serena said, trying to calm him down and explain to him what happened.

"Well, that makes it all better. I'm glad you two didn't fuck this morning." Darien growled, his voice filled with sarcasm.

"Darien, please! You know that I wouldn't have wanted him to come by!" she said, getting more worked up about the issues.

"But he did, Serena. He did and I got pushed to the side as if I were leftovers!" he said, almost yelling.

"Don't you dare imply that I treat you like that!"

"But you do! You always put him first! This was embarrassing enough for me, you have no idea what it did to me hearing you with another guy!" he said, getting on his feet and staring her in the eyes.

"What about you, huh? You're the one that's legally bound to somebody! So what if I have a boyfriend? You, Darien, are MARRIED. You MARRIED this woman, which means you are accountable to her! I have no responsibility to Malcolm, yet you are supposed to be there for that woman! WHAT I'M DOING IS NOT NEARLY AS BAD AS WHAT YOU'RE DOING." Serena retorted with matching anger.

"Are you really placing blame Serena? You're right, I'm still legally married. But you're wrong on the last part. Ever since we've been doing whatever this THING is between us, I haven't touched her! Or any other woman! You're the one that continues to fuck her boyfriend and kiss him and everything! DON'T TELL ME THAT I'M WORSE THAN YOU ARE!" he roared back at her, angry that she had thrown Lita in his face.

"This is too difficult, it's just too hard… and you are NOT the person I thought you were! I came in here to apologize to you, and to tell you that I chose YOU; that I realized it after Malcolm came through the door and ruined our morning." Serena said, tears forming in her eyes, partly because she was angry, yet also because she was upset. Darien looked Serena in the eyes, and sighed gave a little chuckle.

"So you're telling me that it took you up till 45 minutes ago to realize I was what you wanted? Is that supposed to make me feel better? After all the time we spent together, I had to hide in a room in order for you to want to break up with him? Sucks." Darien said, sitting back into his chair and picking up his papers again, ignoring the blonde woman in front of him. Serena let a couple of tears fall from her face. "You can go now." he said, without looking up at her again. Serena was at a loss for words as more tears fell.

"I'm sorry I wasn't good enough for this and that I didn't do it the way you liked." She said as she walked out of his office, and shut the door behind him. Serena grabbed the purse and coat she had flung on her desk and walked back off the floor and back onto the elevator. She stood in the elevator as tears fell down her face; she couldn't believe that things had gone so badly. Serena got off the elevator and rushed to her car, and without even paying attention, ran into somebody. She dropped her purse and her jacket.

"Ugh, damn it!" Serena yelled, as more tears rushed to her eyes and picked up her stuff from the ground.

"Serena? What is going on? Are you okay?" Andrew asked, pulling her together, and into his arms as she broke down. Serena couldn't stop herself, her body shook as she cried onto Andrew's shoulder. The pressure of his arms wrapped around her small frame made her feel safe and protected. Andrew held her in his arms, afraid to let her go. He had no idea what had just happened to her, but he knew that it had to do with Darien. Andrew stood with her as he stroked her hair, trying to comfort her.

"It's okay Serena. Shhhhh, it's alright. I'm here, shhh." He said, holding the small woman in his arms. After a couple of minutes Serena began to pull herself together again. Feeling embarrassed, she began to wipe the tears from her face.

"Serena, honey are you okay? What did he do?" he asked, brushing her hair back from her face. Serena shook her head, but couldn't seem to get the words out of her mouth. Her face was covered in tears, her make-up was running down her cheeks, and her eyes were red from the crying. Andrew wiped her tears away and looked down at her.

"Listen, whatever happened between you two just know he cares, okay? Go home and get away from him. I'll even call Mina for you, and she'll be over to cheer you up before you know it." He said, smiling at her. Serena shook her head in agreement.

"Thanks." She said before taking off to her car. Andrew watched her walk away, hoping that whatever had made her so upset would be an easy fix. He pulled out his phone and quickly called Mina and told her of the situation. He stepped onto his floor and went to his office as he finished up his phone conversation. He hung up the phone and put his briefcase on his desk and sat down. He didn't know if he wanted to venture into Darien's office, but he knew that as his best friend, he needed to talk to him. Andrew got up and removed his jacket, then went across the floor and knocked on Darien's door.

"What?" Darien growled, not in the mood to talk. Andrew walked into his office and sat down in the chair in front of his desk.

"You want to tell me why I ran into a crying Serena in the parking lot?" he asked, waiting for Darien to answer him. Darien didn't even look up from his papers as he shook his head.

"It's no longer my problem. It's done." He said, continuing to scribble on the documents in front of him. Andrew's jaw dropped.

"What? What are you talking about?" Andrew said, completely shocked. Darien shrugged his shoulders.

"I mean whatever it was that we had between us is done." He said simply. Andrew sat there quietly for a few minutes, watching him work. He had never known a man who could ignore his feelings like Darien.

"Are you okay with this?" he asked, watching Darien's facial expressions. Darien scrunched his face but brushed it off.

"Yes, I'm fine." He said, finally looking up at Andrew. "Listen, I don't want to talk about this anymore. I have work to do." He said. Andrew took the hint and got up from the chair.

"Alright, well if you need me, I'm here. I sent Mina over to Serena's to make sure she was okay… just thought you might want to know she'll be taken care of." He said as he reached the door and walked outside. Darien shook his head and simply continued to do the work that was in front of him. He didn't want to be distracted by Serena and the argument that they had just had. He wanted to be able to not feel for just a few seconds, a few minutes! Darien had experienced enough emotion during the past 2 days than he had really wanted. It was enough.

* * *

Serena had just gotten home and had shed her work clothing, opting for lounge wear instead. Before she knew it, Mina had burst into her apartment carrying a bunch of bags on her arms.

"Hey, listen before we delve into this, I picked up Chinese food, some ice cream, candy and a loooooooot of chocolate. Chinese food first!" Mina said, putting the bags on the kitchen counter and began taking out all the boxes.

"Mina, no… I don't really want food… How did you even know? I didn't know you were coming." she said, sitting down on her couch. Mina looked at her with a skeptical stare.

"Intuition. No, Andrew called me. Anyways, you have no choice about the food I got all your favorites." She said, bringing the food and placing it in her hands. Mina handed her the fork and Serena took it, smiling at her friend.

"Thanks Mina." she said as she dug in.

"What are best friends for? Now, start at the beginning, what happened?" Mina asked, anxious to hear the story. Serena told her story, not leaving anything out. Mina listened intently, trying to piece everything together as Serena told the story dispersed with a few tears. It was hard to see her best friend like this, but she knew she needed a friend. Once Serena was done talking, Mina took a deep breath.

"Serena, I'm so sorry that this happened. Darien was out of line, he shouldn't have pointed fingers." She said, looking at her friend. Serena faked a smile at Mina, as she shrugged her shoulders.

"It's just upsetting that he threw it all in my face… but he was kind of right; he wasn't with anybody else while we were together, and I kept going back to Malcolm." Serena admitted, knowing that he had been a little bit right in his words.

"Listen, things will get better. If things are really over with Darien then you'll be able to move forward with Malcolm and give him a real shot." Mina replied trying to get Serena to see the bright side. She sat there curled up on the couch with her food in her hands as she mulled over Mina's words. She had never thought of it that way, but as she did she felt a pain in her heart. It wasn't what she wanted, that much she knew.

"I just don't think… I don't think I'll stay with Malcolm either. What I've done is something so bad that I've hurt two people, maybe even three if Darien's wife ever finds out. When I tell Malcolm what I've been up to, there's no way that he would trust me again; nor do I want him to." Serena said, taking the time to think out all her emotions and thoughts. "I can't be with somebody right now. I need to sort through this first, and then I'll figure out men after that."

"No matter what you choose, I'll be here to support you. Are you sure you want to tell Malcolm what's been going on?" Mina asked. She knew that it was the right thing, and that if she were in her position she would do the same, but she also knew that if Serena told him, she'd go through more hurt, and Mina didn't want to see Serena like that.

"Yes. I have to. I've carried on this lie for far too long, I need to end it. He needs to know that I'm not what he thinks I am. No more lies." Serena said, looking Mina in the eye and gathering up her strength. She was going to make this promise to herself; she had done enough damage and she would fix it. Mina smiled at her and shook her head.

"I'll be here with the ice cream and food for you to dive into." Mina said, smiling still. Serena giggled as she leaned over and laid her head on Mina's shoulder, closing her eyes. She didn't know where she would be without her; Serena had done some terrible things over the past few weeks, but Mina still stood by her side, as loyal as ever.

"Thanks." Serena said, truly meaning it. The two blondes remained curled up on the couch together as they watched movies and pigged out on food. Mina was being the perfect best friend; keeping Serena's attention off the looming conversation she had to have with Malcolm, and the hurtful one she had previously had with Darien. Pretty soon Mina was heading out so that she could get the dirt on Darien from Andrew. She left Serena's apartment as she gave her friend a tight hug.

"Listen; if you need me to come over tonight and sleep here, I'm just a phone call away. Andrew can fend for himself." Mina said, looking Serena in the eyes, Serena smiled at her, and shook her head.

"I'm sure I'll be fine. Malcolm won't be here till tomorrow morning, so I should be good tonight. No more crying." Serena said, breathing deeply and showing her brave face. Mina gave her a look; the look that said she didn't believe a word, but smiled and nodded.

"Alright Sere, I'm out. I love you, and everything will be fine, promise." Mina said, leaving the doorway. Serena waved back at her.

"Love you too, thanks for everything. You're the best." She said, as Mina walked away from the door. Serena sighed as she shut the front door and turned to face her apartment. Everything was so quiet and still. Serena shrugged off the feeling and went around cleaning the living room of all the food Mina had brought and cleaned all the dishes. Serena got ready for bed and climbed in, hoping that sleep would come quickly.

Serena fell asleep after lying in bed for over two hours, tossing and turning. It had been impossible for her to fall asleep, and once she had, she fell into a deep sleep. Early that morning, Serena woke up to a bubbling feeling in her stomach. She closed her eyes again, but the feeling wasn't leaving. Serena quickly got up and ran to her bathroom as she flipped the toilet seat up just in time as she emptied the contents of her stomach into the bowl. Serena pulled her hair back, and then slumped to the floor. She breathed in deeply, hating that feeling so much; Serena leaned against the wall, anticipating that the wave would return.

* * *

Darien was getting ready for work; he had barely slept the night before. He looked as if he hadn't slept in weeks, but that wasn't going to stop him from going to the office. He wondered what the morning would be like after the argument that he and Serena had the day before. He had no idea how it would affect them; he knew how it was affecting himself. He had never felt so low about anything in his entire life; he couldn't even believe that he could hurt this much.

Darien brushed it off as he gazed into the mirror, looking at the dark circles under his eyes. He took a deep breath and pulled himself together. He picked up his keys and his briefcase and left the house, shutting the door behind him. The drive to work was no less stressful than any other day. For the first time ever, Darien had never wanted to stay home from work before, but today things were different. He got into the elevator and got off on his office floor, looking for the blonde woman that was supposed to be behind the desk by now, but she wasn't there. Shrugging his shoulders, he figured that she would be with Andrew to avoid seeing him.

Andrew was sitting in his office as he heard the door to Darien's office close. He figured that he needed to go over and see him sooner or later; he had to tell him the news. Serena had called in sick that morning and was taking the day off. Andrew didn't know if Serena was lying to get out of seeing Darien today, or if she was actually sick. He got up from his desk and made his way to the door so that he could talk to Darien. Although there was no point in seeing Darien's reaction (because there wouldn't be one), Andrew needed to tell him that his assistant would not be in this morning and therefore he would not be able to complete as much work.

Knocking on his office door, he heard a loud grunt, which typically meant that Andrew was welcome to come in, but that he had interrupted Darien's concentration. He opened the door enough to slide in quickly.

"Sorry Darien, but Serena called in sick this morning; something about a stomach virus? Anyways, she's going to be out today." He said, watching Darien's eyes looking for hints to his feelings.

"Fine, just get as much work done as you can. We still have a dead line to meet." Darien said, his eyes not leaving his papers; his concentration only just faltering. Andrew nodded as he shut the door behind him again.

"That wasn't too bad…" he said to himself as he walked back to his office to resume the work that he needed to do. Andrew sat in his desk and got back to work, trying to be as quick and efficient as possible. After about an hour, his phone rang and Mina's name popped up. He smiled to himself as he answered the phone.

"Hey baby, just wake up?" he asked. Earlier that morning he had left her sound asleep in his bed. It was strange, he had never cared about someone so much before; Mina actually made his life a bit brighter.

"Yea, I just got out of the shower." She said.

"Wish I was there to see that." He said, actually wishing that he was back at his house at this very moment. Mina giggled at him.

"You can see later. Anyway, how is Serena? Are you guys working together? Or is she getting into another yelling match with Darien?" she asked, curious about her friend's well-being.

"She's not here. She called in sick." Andrew said, catching Mina up to speed.

"What? She's not in today? Oh shit."

"Yea, I'm not sure what's going on right now. I don't know how the two of them are ever going to be okay again."

"Well, Serena was saying that she was going to talk to Malcolm and tell him everything. Andrew, I think I should go over there or at least call her. I'm worried." Mina said, the concern growing in her voice. Andrew loved this about Mina; how she truly cared for her friends and family.

"Alright babe, well go ahead and call her. Tell me what she says, okay?"

"Sure, I'll call you later." Mina said as she hung up the phone. Andrew put his phone down and smiled to himself. He brushed it off and got to work.

* * *

Serena was lying in her bed, she had no urge to move or do anything at all. She heard her phone ring; once, twice, three times. She let out a sigh, as she answered her phone, not looking at who it was, nor did she think she cared.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Hey baby, I'm surprised you answered. I thought you'd be at work…? What's wrong?" Malcolm asked. Serena sat up in her bed, and she instantly regretted her movements as she felt the sudden urge to vomit again. She suppressed the urge as she tried to talk to him.

"Yea, I'm not feeling too well. I called in sick." Serena said, trying to keep things short so she could go to the bathroom soon.

"Baby, you sound horrible. You need anything? I can pick up something for you, if you like?" he asked, concerned for his girlfriend. Serena got up from the bed and walked to her bathroom.

"No, really don't worry about me." She said as she pulled the phone away from her mouth and covered it as she emptied the contents in her stomach. She put the phone back to her ear as she heard Malcolm finish up his thoughts.

"… sure? I really don't mind." He said. Serena shook her head.

"Malcolm, I appreciate it, but I'll probably just be in bed sleeping." She said, walking back to her bed and laying down.

"Alright, but if you need anything call me, okay? I'll call you later." He said.

"Bye." Serena said, hanging up the phone and crawling back underneath the covers. She fell asleep a little bit after that, still feeling uneasy.

* * *

Darien was furious as he drove his car towards Serena's apartment building. He couldn't believe that he had to be the last to find out. It had been three days since Serena had been into the office. She had called out sick the past few days, and according to Andrew the only symptom Serena had was the equivalent to morning sickness. He continued on his drive to her apartment, not really thinking about what he would say to her, just knowing that he was angry. He couldn't think about more than that.

He finally arrived at her apartment building, and climbed the steps to her floor and proceeded to knock on her door. It was at that moment that he realized he had nothing to say to Serena. He just wanted to hear the news from her own mouth. He wanted to hear Serena say the words that would potentially change his life forever. Darien knocked on her door again, getting impatient.

Finally, Serena opened the door. Immediately, her face went black as she stared at the man standing in front of her. She had no idea what to say to him, or how he had ended up at her door. Serena seemed to be moving her mouth but no words would come out. She closed her eyes, then opened them again and looked up at him.

"Uhh… what are you doing here?" she managed to say. Darien looked at her; and was surprised that she still had such an effect on him. It was as if he didn't remember how gorgeous she was, or how he loved looking into her big blue eyes. But he brushed it off as he looked at her from head to toe.

"So are you going to tell me what's going on?" he asked in a dark tone.

"What are you talking about?" Serena asked, trying to not let his eyes look too deeply into hers. She didn't want to give him more power than he already had over her.

"Don't lie to me, Serena. I know about everything. I just want to know if its mine or if it's Malcolm's." Darien said, trying to get to the point of this conversation. Serena's jaw dropped as she heard what he said.

"WHAT are you talking about?" she said again, not understanding what Darien was talking about.

"I know you're pregnant! I know that's why you've been missing work! I just want to know whose it is!" he said getting angry. Serena took a deep breath before she spoke to Darien again. She didn't know where to begin.

"After all this time you really think I can't take care of myself? Did you actually think I was that irresponsible? After all the time we spent together you really think I wasn't on any kind of birth control? Do I look that stupid to you? I'm an adult, Darien! But unlike you, I took measures to protect myself from things that I wasn't ready for! So, NO, I'm NOT pregnant… and if I was, I wouldn't want it to be yours!" Serena yelled at him, furious that he assumed she had no back up plans of her own.

Darien had no words. He just stood there staring at the small woman who was so obviously angered at him. Serena looked at him and shook her head.

"I went to the doctor today, and it was just a stomach virus. Thanks for your concern, now if you could please get out of my apartment. I'd really appreciate it." Serena said. As she began to shut the door, a hand appeared out of nowhere to stop her.

"Darien, stop, get ou—" Serena started, trying to move his hand out of the way. But as soon as the door opened again, there stood Malcolm. It was as if her heart had stopped. His timing could not have been any worse. She hadn't gotten a chance to come clean to him yet; this was not how he was supposed to find out.

Malcolm gazed at her with his green eyes, trying to read her expressions. Serena had no idea what to do; it was as if she were a deer stuck in headlights. Finally, Malcolm spoke.

"How long? How long has this been going on?" Malcolm asked her, looking her directly in the eyes. Serena couldn't speak. Not only was this a terrible situation, but having Darien standing in the background did not make it any easier. It took her a couple of seconds before she could say anything in return.

"Bahamas." She replied. Malcolm's face hardened, and he backed away from the door. He ran a hand over his face, and shook his head as he looked at her.

"I can't believe this. I can't believe you Serena. I thought you were different. I trusted you! No, don't come near me!" he said as Serena made a move towards him. She hated seeing the look of pain in his eyes.

"No. I can't believe you were another one of Darien's playgirls." He said, turning away from her and walking off down the hallway.

"Malcolm! Wait, please!" she said, grabbing his hand. He turned to her and pulled his wrist out of her hand.

"Fuck you, Serena."

* * *

So, how did you guys like this chapter? A little bit of drama for you guys! I wonder what will happen next chapter! Will Malcolm forgive Serena? Will Darien right things? Or will Serena give up on both men?


	20. Chapter 20

-Chapter 20

Serena watched as Malcolm walked away from her. She couldn't get the shocked look off her face as she struggled to find the words to say to Malcolm as he slipped down the hall, out the door and down the stairs. Serena could feel the tears coming down her face. She leaned against the wall and put her head in her hands. Things could not have been getting any worse for her. Although, she couldn't blame Malcolm for getting mad, this was entirely her fault. How could she have let things get this far?

Darien was standing there watching Serena as she slumped to the floor, her head in her hands. His anger and humiliation at what he had just said to her were still strong as he watched her. But slowly, something was eating away at him; he hated how Serena was curled up on the floor crying. As much as he didn't want to, he found himself aching to touch her, to hold her, to try and make her feel better. He just didn't know how.

Mustering up his courage, Darien walked over to Serena, sat on the floor next to her and slowly put his arms around her, taking her small body up against his own. Darien sat there with her, rubbing her back as she continued to cry. Having her in his arms made him feel good again; of course the circumstances were not the best, but having her close to his body made him feel whole again. He gently kissed the top of her head, keeping her against his chest.

Serena felt the arms wrap around her and for a few moments she felt safe. She liked the pressure that his body put on hers; it was a good feeling. She stayed in his arms for a long while, just letting everything out and feeling sorry for herself. Finally, Serena pulled herself together, wiping her eyes and taking a couple of deep breaths. It wasn't until then that she realized what was going on. She pulled herself away from Darien's body and quickly stood up.

"Darien, you need to leave." Serena said, stepping away from him. Darien, looking a bit startled at her abrupt motions, looked at her and stood up and took a step towards her, closing the gap between them. Lost for words, Serena let him approach her. Darien cupped her face in his hands and looked her in the eyes. He brought his lips to hers and he couldn't express how right it felt for him to be there with her again. He felt her responding to his lips and one hand drifted back down to her waist and pulled her body against his. Serena's body was responding, but she quickly collected her thoughts and pushed him away from her.

"Darien, stop! We can't do this! Its just not… its not right." Serena said taking more steps away from him. Darien took another step forward, but Serena held her hand up to him.

"Serena…" he said, looking her in the eyes. But once he gazed into her blue eyes, he could see the hurt that was in her eyes. It crushed him to see her so upset.

"Darien, I can't do this anymore. Not with you, not with Malcolm not with anybody!" Serena said, looking at him.

"Serena… please, just listen to me." Darien said, hoping she would listen to him, although he had nothing prepared, nor did he know what he would say. He just knew he couldn't let her walk away from him. He hadn't known a feeling like this in all his life.

"Please Darien; I just can't continue doing this back and forth thing with you! It's gotten to be too hard." Serena said, and with that she turned away from him and walked into her apartment. Before she closed the door, she took one last look at the dark man and shrugged.

"I'll see you at work." And with that she shut the door. Serena let out a sigh as she turned her back to the door and leaned against it. Again, she slumped to the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees, bringing them against her chest. Serena couldn't take any more of this, she wanted to be done.

On the other side of the door, Darien remained standing there. He too sat down against the wall, and stared at the door in front of him. This was a situation that he had never been in. he was uncertain of how to convince her that she was supposed to be with him. He could feel it in his heart that she belonged with him. Darien stayed sitting in the hallway for two hours, trying to come up with some sort of gesture that would make Serena understand how he felt about her. Finally, something came to mind.

Darien got up from his spot and left the hallway, went down the stairs, out of the building and straight to his car. He couldn't believe he hadn't thought of this solution earlier! He sped off down the road, knowing that there was only one thing he could do. Darien drove back to his house, eager to find the documents he had prepared long ago but had never gotten around to filling out or completing. In his study, he finally found the divorce papers hidden in a folder on one of his bookshelves.

He looked at the papers and took a deep breath then taking a pen and quickly signing at all the places indicated. Looking down at his final signature, he smiled. His marriage to Lita was the only thing that was holding him back from being with Serena; Malcolm seemed to be out of the picture once he had found out the situation between her and Darien. Grabbing his cell phone, Darien called Lita's number as he headed out to his car. On the last ring she picked up the phone.

"I knew you'd be calling me sooner or later." Lita said softly on the other line. Darien knew he had to speak to her the way she wanted in order for her to sign the papers.

"Where are you Lita, I have a favor to ask you." He said, turning the car on and reversing out of his long driveway.

"I'm with Amy right now, at her house. You should come and see us." She said.

"I'm on my way right now." Darien said, then hung up the phone. There used to be a time where he would go to see Lita and Amy solely for physical purposes, but tonight was something different. He drove the thirty minutes out to the apartment that his hopefully soon-to-be ex-wife and her girlfriend shared. He parked his car, and ran up the steps and let himself into their apartment.

"Lita?" he called, walking through the entrance and towards the living room. Darien could hear noises coming from the room and as he got closer, he knew what was going on. He stopped short of the living room and pulled himself together, deciding not to continue but to bring Lita to him instead.

"Lita, I need to speak with you, now." Darien called. He heard a soft moan, and then within seconds, Lita emerged from the room, wrapping a sheet around her bare body.

"Aww, did you not want to join us?" she asked, walking up to him and kissing his lips. Darien pulled away from her and shook his head.

"No thanks, I need you to sign these forms for me." Darien replied, handing her the divorce papers. Lita looked at him, then took the papers and examined them.

"What the hell is this?" she asked, looking back up at him.

"Lita, its time. What is the point of carrying on like this? You've got your own life, and I have mine." Darien said, handing her the pen he carried with him. She looked up at him and shook her head.

"I can't believe this. Why now? What happened? Who is she?" Lita asked, staring at Darien with her big green eyes.

"That's none of your concern. Just sign the papers, please." He said as nicely as he could.

"How dare you! It is of my concern! You're MY husband, aren't you? Shouldn't I know who my husband is leaving me for?" Lita's eyes flashed with anger. There used to be a time where Darien found her intensity alluring, as if she could match him. But now, he only felt annoyed at her stubbornness.

"You left me for another woman, how is this any different?" he asked, glaring down at the woman in front of him. Lita watched him for a few seconds, then took the papers out of his hand, leaned them against the wall and reluctantly signed them. After a couple moments, she finished and handed them over to him.

"Now get the fuck out of my apartment."

Darien nodded, turned away and walked towards the door. Before he reached the door, Lita caught his arm, pulled him around and pressed her now naked body against him as she placed her lips on his. She took the papers out of his hand, threw them to the floor and placed them on her body as she continued to kiss him. Darien couldn't help but be pulled in to her alluring taste and the way she moved her body against his. But as quickly as his weakness came, it left just as fast. Darien pulled away from her and pulled his hands off her body. He bent down and picked up the divorce papers and looked at Lita. He brushed the hair out of her face, placed a gentle kiss on her cheek and walked away.

"Goodbye Lita, I wish you the best." He said, before closing the door behind him. He leaned against the door and felt a sudden weight lift off his shoulders. For the most part, he felt relieved to have finally gotten the papers signed, but he couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of nostalgia for the woman he had just kissed. She was a part of his past and a part of him, and he knew he'd always care for her. But the way he felt about Serena was something he had never felt before, not even for Lita.

Darien took a deep breath and walked back to his car. He checked his blackberry to see what time it was, and the clock read 1:30 am as he climbed into his black Mercedes. He sat there debating on whether or not he should call Serena. He wanted to hear her voice, to hear her laugh. Darien continued to sit in his car and decided it was probably best to wait to speak to Serena in the morning when she came into the office. Reluctantly, he put his phone down and pulled out of Lita and Amy's driveway and headed towards home.

* * *

Serena was still sitting on her couch, trying to collect herself. She had made such a mess of things with Malcolm. Why couldn't she have just come clean to him long ago? Serena lay on her couch; her eyes were tired and red from the tears she had shed. A couple of minutes later Serena got up to go to her bedroom, when she heard a knock at the door. She stopped in her tracks and looked at her door. She couldn't deal with anymore surprises or more guys coming over and getting angry with her. Serena didn't think she would answer the door, she didn't want to see who was behind it. She didn't want to hear Darien try to console her, or Malcolm being angry at him.

The knock came more furiously, as Serena continued to stand there and debate whether or not to open the door. But the knocks continued to come, and so Serena reluctantly walked to the door and peeked through the peep hole. She took a deep breath as the blonde haired man stood outside of her door.

"Serena! Serena, I need you to please open the door… Please." Malcolm said, standing behind the door. "Really, I just need to talk to you." He said, knocking on the door again. Serena turned away from the door and leaned against it. She put her face in her hands and shook her head, she couldn't deal with all of this.

"Serena, I know you're there… please just open the door… I just want to talk to you. Serena I NEED to talk to you…" he said through the door. Serena took a deep sigh; she wasn't ready to face Malcolm yet.

"Serena, I just want you to know that I really want to talk about this… I'm sorry I overreacted earlier this evening, but it got me crazy knowing you were with somebody else… Serena? Please answer me…" Serena looked back through the peep hole and saw Malcolm there, pacing back and forth. She couldn't continue doing this to him, so she turned to the door and opened it. Malcolm turned to her and froze for a second.

"Can I come in?" Malcolm asked as he looked into her eyes. Serena looked back at him, and saw the urgency in his eyes. Reluctantly, she let her guard down and opened the door wide enough for him to come through and into her apartment.

"Malcolm, please let me say something first." Serena said, closing the door behind her. But Malcolm cut her off.

"No, please just let me say what I need to say, then I'll listen to what you need to tell me." He said, almost begging her. Serena couldn't deny him his request, and walked him over to the couch and sat down. Malcolm sat next to her and took her hands.

"Serena, I'm sorry for leaving so quickly. I shouldn't have just left. It was just too much for me to handle, hearing about this from Darien and then him asking if he was the father of your baby. I didn't know how to react. I just want us to be able to talk about this and move through this. I think we have something special, and we need to hold onto that." Serena looked into Malcolm's eyes and began to tear up; she couldn't believe she would have to break this wonderful man's heart. She took a deep breath and pulled her hands out of his.

"Malcolm, please don't blame yourself for this. What happened was my fault and I really need to be honest with you." Serena said. Malcolm pulled away from her and continued to look at her; Serena knew he was expecting the worst, and she hated herself knowing that she was going to give it to him.

"With Darien, it wasn't just once or a couple of times. When we were in the Bahamas, I stayed with him almost every night, I had feelings for him. I still have feelings for him. And I'm sorry for what I did, I didn't mean for anything to happen with me and Darien, things just escalated. I know I should have told you earlier, and I wanted to, but I had no idea what to say to you or how to say it. I never meant for this to happen and I don't deserve a guy as amazing as you are." She said, looking into his eyes. Malcolm took a deep breath and looked away from her.

"So the mornings when I called you, and talked to you and told you I missed you and you said you missed me too, you were with him? In bed with him?" he asked, getting a little angry.

"I'm sorry Malcolm, I really am!" Serena said. She felt that there was nothing else she could say to him. Malcolm got up from the couch and started walking away.

"Malcolm, please come back!" she said, hoping to salvage something, although she knew she didn't deserve it. Malcolm turned back to her.

"Come back for what? So you can tell me how you two probably laughed at me when I called you? I feel like an idiot Serena! Here I was in New York wishing that I could be with you, when you're off fucking your boss, falling in love with him for all I know! Have you been with him since you got back to New York?" he asked, his green eyes shining with anger. Serena opened her mouth to respond, but couldn't.

"I'll take that as a yes." He said, turning away from her and continuing to walk out of her apartment.

"Malcolm, I am truly sorry for what I did to you. I hope that you find somebody that deserves you." Serena said, as she watched Malcolm walk towards the door out. Malcolm turned to face her.

"It's strange, because I thought you were that somebody, Serena." He said as he slammed the door shut after walking out of her apartment. Serena couldn't help but feel even worse. She walked over to the door, locked it and went to her bedroom. Serena curled up onto her bed and slowly shed a few tears. As she lay in her bed, she began to wonder how she'd ever cheer up after this. As much as she hated herself for it, all she could think of was curling up with Darien, that was the only thing she could think of that would make her feel any better. She hated herself for wanting to be with Darien so soon after Malcolm had left her, but she couldn't help herself.

Serena was getting desperate, she wanted to hear Darien's voice and hopefully to hear that he was thinking of her too. She picked up her BlackBerry and scrolled down to his name and just stared at it. Serna took a deep breath and pressed the green button to call him. Her heart was racing as she waited for him to answer his phone. The phone rang once, twice, three then four times before it went to voicemail. Serena's heart sunk as she hung up the phone. She groaned as she slumped back into her pillows and began to fall asleep.

* * *

Serena walked into the Shields Inc. building the next morning. She didn't know what to really expect this morning, but she had really wished she hadn't called Darien late the other night. Serena sighed and walked onto the floor and sat her things down on her desk and looked around to see if Andrew or Darien were already in. Seeing Darien's door cracked a bit, she made her way over to it, and knocked lightly before opening the door slowly.

"Darien?" she called, waiting to hear his voice. There he sat at his desk, looking over files and documents.

"Yes, Serena?" he asked, putting his documents down and looking into her blue eyes. She smiled gently, and leaned against his door.

"Good morning, is there anything I can help you with?" Serena asked. Darien watched her body language; she looked more relaxed, granted the last time he saw her she was curled up crying on the floor. He brushed that picture out of his head and looked at the stunning woman in front of him.

Darien analyzed Serena for a couple of seconds; there was something that was mysterious about her. He had woken up this morning and saw that she had called him late at night, and for what reason he didn't know, although he was very curious about it. He also wanted to tell her about what happened between him and Lita, but he didn't know how to tell her. Serena looked back at him, waiting for an answer.

"No, nothing." He said, watching her for a couple more seconds. Serena nodded and turned to leave when Darien stopped her. "Serena, wait…" he said. She turned around on the spot and looked at him.

"Yes?"

"I was wondering… would you be willing to go to dinner with me tonight?" he asked with a straight face. Serena was taken aback for a moment, but slowly pulled herself together.

"Oh… sure. Yea, that seems fine." She replied. Darien smiled and she took that as a dismissal from his office as well. Serena stepped outside and closed the door behind her. She had no idea what having dinner with Darien would mean, and whether this was something romantic or something else.

Serena walked to her desk and got started on the documents that were on her desk. The minutes crept by as she filed the paperwork, filled out memos and arranged meetings. After half an hour, she got so antsy about the dinner that she got up and went to Andrew's office. She knocked on the door and waited for Andrew to reply.

"Come in Serena." He said. She walked into his office and smiled at him. Andrew looked up and motioned for her to take a seat in front of his desk. Serena sat down and waited for him to say something, she knew that he would. After a couple of minutes, Andrew looked up from his papers and set them aside.

"So, how is your day going?" he asked with a knowing smile on his face. Serena rolled her eyes at him and proceeded to tell him about Darien.

"I was in Darien's office and he… he asked me to dinner tonight. I honestly have no idea why. We didn't end things on a good note when he left my apartment last night, and I don't know what's going on." Serena said, looking at him. "Andrew you must know something."

"Why do you assume that I know anything? He barely tells me anything to do with you or his feelings for you." he replied.

"I just don't know what he wants, or what to say to him. I was just so angry yesterday when he came over and then Malcolm showed up while he was there and got angry. It was just an awkward situation and I didn't handle it well." She explained. Andrew watched her facial expressions, he could tell that she was still concerned about Malcolm, but he knew that she wanted Darien.

"Serena listen, I know that things have been hard for you and you're worried about hurting people's feelings, but you have to put those things aside. If you want to go to dinner with Darien, then go. Having a meal with him will hopefully clear your thoughts. It might be good for you guys to talk." Andrew said, looking her in the eye. Serena nodded and took a deep breath.

"This is just hard. I don't think I'll be making any decisions about who I date anytime soon. I've messed up too much." She finished.

Andrew watched as Serena got her things together, arranging her files that he had given her to take care of. It was obvious that Serena had nobody to turn to that knew them both well. It was hard to see her in such a state, she looked almost defeated; as if there were no more hope for her. Andrew just wanted her to be able to forgive herself for what happened, and that she could be with Darien. He watched her walk out of his office as she smiled at him.

"If things don't go well, you can always call me and Mina. We're both here for you." he said with a smile. Serena's face brightened up and nodded.

"Thanks Andrew, I really appreciate it." She said as she closed the door behind her. Serena went to her desk and finished getting the papers together and working on schedules and other documents. When it came time to leave, Darien emerged from his office and waited patiently for Serena to finish doing her work. Once she was done, Darien helped her collect her things.

"Are you ready to go?" Darien asked, helping her get her purse together. Serena smiled at him, and it made his heart stop. He couldn't go without her, this dinner had to go well and he needed her to be with him.

"Yea, I'm ready. Where are we going?" she asked as they headed to the elevator. Darien waited for her to step in before him and then followed her.

"It's just this small Italian restaurant downtown, my favorite place to go in the city." He said, looking her in the eyes. Serena couldn't keep his gaze so she looked down at her hands. They reached the lobby and walked out together, not saying a word. Darien wanted more than anything to reach out and grab her hand and feel her skin against his. He had never felt like this before, never wanted to make somebody else happy just so he too could be happy. They walked out of the building and Darien turned to her.

"If you like, I can drive us there." He said, hoping she would come with him. Serena looked apprehensive as she looked up at him. "I promise I'll just drive us there and back." He said, recognizing her uneasiness.

"Alright, that's fine." Serena said, smiling politely at him. Darien could tell she was nervous about what was going on between the two of them. All he wanted to do was take her hand and reassure her that everything would be fine, but he didn't know if it would be. They reached his car and he opened the passenger door for her and she climbed in, smiling at him the way she used to.

"Thank you." she said, as she climbed into his car. Darien grinned at her then shut the door before going around to the driver's seat. The drive to the restaurant brought Darien back to the time when they were in the Bahamas; they were at ease and laughed the entire way there. Serena was her bubbly self again and he was being drawn to her energy. As they pulled up to the restaurant, Darien let the valet take his car.

Serena was lost in the moment; she linked arms with Darien as he came around to her side of the car. They walked into the restaurant arm in arm, appearing to be a happy couple. The host seated them in a small booth that was a little secluded. Darien continued to be a gentleman and pulled her seat out for her. Serena smiled at Darien as he sat across from her. She looked into his eyes, and smiled.

"So what is all this? Why did we come to dinner?" she asked, curious as to why he was doing all of this. He looked at her and took her hands in his. Darien had made up his mind; he wanted to tell her how he felt.

"I just want to tell you that things have changed, I need you to know that I understand why you were upset, and I wanted to make it right." He said, looking her in the eyes. Serena was confused, she didn't know what Darien was talking about, and she didn't know if she wanted to hear it. Serena tried to take her hands out of his, but she couldn't; she had missed the feeling of his hands on her so she couldn't remove herself from him.

"Darien… what are you talking about?" she asked, not understanding him. Darien gazed into her eyes and smiled at her.

"I have feelings for you, very strong feelings Serena. I've never felt like this about anybody before. I can't imagine not seeing you smile everyday, or kissing you… I heard what you said the other day, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but I'm trying to make them right." Darien said, caressing her hands as he held them.

"I want you to know that I've done it… I divorced Lita last night." He said smiling brightly. Darien watched Serena's face and was confused by her reaction. He had expected her to be happy and smiling at him, excited that they had no more obstacles to overcome. Instead, her eyes were tearing up and she slowly removed her hands from his. Darien's smile slowly slid off his face, and he became unreadable. Serena shook her head at him.

"You did what?"


End file.
